Atomic simulation of interaction mechanism between basal/prismatic interface and amorphous/crystalline interface of dual-phase magnesium alloys

Abstract Dual-phase nanostructured amorphous/crystalline (A/C) model is an effective method to improve the mechanical properties of Mg alloys. However, the interaction behavior between A/C interface (ACI) and various defects is still unclear. Here, the interaction mechanisms between the basal/prismatic interface (BPI) and ACI of dual-phase nanoscale A/C MgAl/Mg alloys are investigated by molecular dynamics simulation method. The results indicate that the ACIs have a significant Peach-Koehler (attractive or repulsive) force to govern the activation of interfacial dislocations in BPI. When the spacing between ACI and BPI (SAB) is less than 12.0 nm, it is found that the attractive force plays a dominant role in interfacial dislocation activation. On the contrary, the repulsive force has an effect on the activation of dislocations. The results also show that the maximum peak strain increases almost linearly with increasing SAB, and the maximum peak strain delay is attributed to the strain contributed by BPIs migration.