Molecular dynamics simulation of microcrack healing in copper

The molecular dynamics method is used to simulate microcrack healing during heating or/and under compressive stress. A center microcrack in Cu crystal could be sealed under a compressive stress or by heating. The role of comp ressive stress and heating in crack healing was additive. During microcrack healing, dislocation generation and motion occurred. If there were pre-exi sted dislocations around the microcrack, the critical temperature or compre ssive stress necessary for microcrack healing would decrease, and the highe r the number of dislocations, the lower the critical temperature or compres sive stress. The critical temperature necessary for microcrack healing depe nded upon the orientation of crack plane. For example, the critical tempera ture of the crack along (001) plane was the lowest, i.e., 770 K. (C) 2001 E lsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.