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Main Authors: Lebyodkin, Mikhail, Gussev, Maxim, Brechtl, Jamieson, Lebedkina, Tatiana
Format: Preprint
Published: 2026
Subjects:
Online Access:https://arxiv.org/abs/2603.20689
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author Lebyodkin, Mikhail
Gussev, Maxim
Brechtl, Jamieson
Lebedkina, Tatiana
author_facet Lebyodkin, Mikhail
Gussev, Maxim
Brechtl, Jamieson
Lebedkina, Tatiana
contents Understanding the evolution of dislocation structures during plastic deformation is critical for predicting the mechanical performance of metallic materials. In this work, we applied in situ scanning electron microscopy/electron backscatter diffraction tensile testing combined with multifractal (MF) analysis to assess deformation-induced dislocation structure evolution in solution-annealed 304L stainless steel, both in its as-received and neutron-irradiated states (5.4 displacements per atom). The analysis of kernel average misorientation patterns revealed the formation of hierarchical dislocation arrangements that exhibit clear MF scaling behavior. Despite pronounced visual differences between nonirradiated and irradiated specimens -- most notably, the appearance of dislocation channels after irradiation -- the singularity spectra suggest that both conditions give rise to similar underlying hierarchical structures. MF analysis provides a quantitative measure of the spatial complexity and self-organization of dislocation patterns, highlighting the accelerated emergence and evolution of the dislocation structures in irradiated polycrystalline materials, as well as the limitation of their spatial extent. The findings indicate that irradiation not only modifies microstructure but also alters correlation-driven dislocation organization. More generally, they demonstrate that MF analysis is a powerful tool for probing mesoscale deformation mechanisms.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2603_20689
institution arXiv
publishDate 2026
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle Emerging hierarchical dislocation structures: Insights from scanning electron microscopy-electron backscatter diffraction in situ tensile testing and multifractal analysis
Lebyodkin, Mikhail
Gussev, Maxim
Brechtl, Jamieson
Lebedkina, Tatiana
Materials Science
Understanding the evolution of dislocation structures during plastic deformation is critical for predicting the mechanical performance of metallic materials. In this work, we applied in situ scanning electron microscopy/electron backscatter diffraction tensile testing combined with multifractal (MF) analysis to assess deformation-induced dislocation structure evolution in solution-annealed 304L stainless steel, both in its as-received and neutron-irradiated states (5.4 displacements per atom). The analysis of kernel average misorientation patterns revealed the formation of hierarchical dislocation arrangements that exhibit clear MF scaling behavior. Despite pronounced visual differences between nonirradiated and irradiated specimens -- most notably, the appearance of dislocation channels after irradiation -- the singularity spectra suggest that both conditions give rise to similar underlying hierarchical structures. MF analysis provides a quantitative measure of the spatial complexity and self-organization of dislocation patterns, highlighting the accelerated emergence and evolution of the dislocation structures in irradiated polycrystalline materials, as well as the limitation of their spatial extent. The findings indicate that irradiation not only modifies microstructure but also alters correlation-driven dislocation organization. More generally, they demonstrate that MF analysis is a powerful tool for probing mesoscale deformation mechanisms.
title Emerging hierarchical dislocation structures: Insights from scanning electron microscopy-electron backscatter diffraction in situ tensile testing and multifractal analysis
topic Materials Science
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2603.20689