Strain percolation: physical considerations

In previous papers, we have introduced a percolation model for the transport of strain through a deforming metal. In this paper, we review the results from that model, and discuss how the model can be applied to the deformation problem. We summarize the principal observational features of deformation and propose that the discrete percolation events correspond to slip line formation in a deforming metal. It is shown that the deforming solid is a self-organizing system. It is recognized that deformation is localized in space and time, that deformation is fundamentally rate-dependent, that hardening depends on relaxation processes associated with discrete percolating events, and that secondary slip is an essential part of band growth and relaxation processes.