We study the mechanical behavior of gradient spacing
twin-structured
single-crystal Ni nanopillars under the conditions of different loading
methods, temperatures, and twin defects via molecular dynamics simulations.
The insights indicate that the yield strength and Young’s modulus
of single-crystal Ni nanopillars are greatly improved when loading
along the gradient direction, which is due to the nucleation of many
dislocations induced by Thompson tetrahedrons. In addition, with the
temperature increases, the atomic energy in the nanocrystals and the
number of disordered atoms increases, resulting in difficulty in the
nucleation of dislocations and decrease in mechanical properties.
In addition, the presence of void in the twin boundary leads to a
decrease in the mechanical properties of nanocrystalline Ni. The position
of the void has relatively little impact on the mechanical properties.
However, when the void occurs in a twin boundary with a large spacing,
the formation of dislocations is suppressed, mainly reflected in the
fact that the initial dislocation density of the volume decreases
as the twin spacing increases. These findings provide positive theoretical
guidance for the design of gradient twin structures in nanosingle
crystals.