Vp. Soldatov et al., Low-temperature softening of beta-tin single crystals on doping with substitutional impurities, LOW TEMP PH, 26(2), 2000, pp. 160-168
The yield stresses of single crystals of solid solutions of beta-tin with s
ubstitutional impurities of indium, cadmium, and zinc are measured over a w
ide interval of low temperatures (1.6-150 K). The low-temperature impurity
softening effect is observed, which is manifested in a decrease in the yiel
d stresses of the alloys in comparison with that of pure tin. The temperatu
re and concentration boundaries of the existence region of this effect are
established, and the dependence on the combined size and modulus misfit par
ameter between the atoms of tin and the impurities, which characterizes the
strength of the impurity barriers for the motion of dislocations in the al
loy, is determined. Analysis of the data obtained indicates a qualitative a
greement of the observed regularities of the impurity softening effect and
the behavior that follows from the model of Sato and Meshii, which takes in
to account the role of impurity atoms both as centers of nucleation of kink
s on screw dislocations and as centers of opposition to the lateral dispers
al of the kinks along the dislocation line. (C) 2000 American Institute of
Physics. [S1063-777X(00)01302-5].