Deformation nanotwins in coarse-grained aluminum alloy at ambient temperature and low strain rate

In order to reveal the possible occurrence of deformation twins in coarse-grained aluminum/aluminum alloy at normal experimental conditions, a 5A02-O aluminum alloy with coarse grains was compressed quasi-statically to various plastic strains at ambient temperature, followed by high-resolution transmission electron analysis. The results revealed some long streaks produced by the thin plate-like structure with 2 atomic planes thick in the specimen undergoing a large strain, while under a relatively small plastic strain, the striped characteristics disappeared. The fast Fourier transform and theoretical analysis have shown that these long streaks are nanotwins, derived from the overlapping of stacking fault ribbons formed by Shockley partial dislocation on adjacent slip planes, which are triggered by the large plastic strain.