THEORY OF TRANSIENT CREEP IN THE L1(2) INTERMETALLIC COMPOUNDS DISPLAYING THE YIELD STRENGTH ANOMALY

A theory of transient creep in the L1(2) intermetallic alloys displayi ng the yield strength anomaly is presented. The theory is based on the hypothesis that the mobile a(101) superdislocations undergo a pinning -depinning transition, displaying critical behavior at a critical stre ss. The areal-velocity scaling function, which describes the average, time-dependent velocity profile of a dislocation as it propagates thro ugh the crystal, is introduced. The theory is compared with preliminar y experiments. It is argued that the measurement of transient creep al lows one to determine information concerning the deformation history o f the sample.