Dislocation-based serrated plastic flow of high entropy alloys at cryogenic temperatures

Abstract Serrated plastic deformation at temperatures close to 0 K has been previously reported in some metals and alloys, and is associated with two possible origins: (i) thermomechanical instability or (ii) mechanical instability. While some recent results indicate that serrations are a mechanical dislocation-based phenomenon, a comprehensive model does not exist. CoCrFeMnNi, an expectedly ideal candidate, exhibits severe serrated plastic deformation with large stress drops in excess of 100 MPa. Furthermore, it also shows cryogenic serrated plastic deformation at a higher temperature (35 K) than previously reported for any other alloy. The exacerbated nature of serrated plastic deformation in CoCrFeMnNi led to the following inferences: (i) temperature and dislocation density are indisputable controlling parameters for cryogenic serrated plastic deformation and they cannot supersede each another; (ii) a phenomenological model is elucidated based on the increasing difficulty for cross-slip with decreasing temperature, leading to sudden massive dislocation proliferation event; (iii) the model establishes a gradual transition from completely non-serrated to completely serrated deformation, mediated by cross-slip, as opposed to the conventional model which proposed a discrete transition; (iv) solute dislocation interaction and associated Stacking Fault Energy (SFE) during deformation plays a key role in controlling dislocation constriction and cross-slip and correspondingly serrated plastic deformation; (v) the need/direct influence of deformation twinning, transformation induced plasticity and especially thermomechanical factors on serrated plastic deformation is invalidated. Some of these points were further clarified through comparisons with CoCrNi and CoNi, also presented in the present article.