Lecture (5)
Defects in Solids
Defects in crystalline Solids: Crystal defects or imperfections have
strong influence upon many properties of crystals, such as strength,
electrical conductivity.
Some important properties of crystals are controlled by as much as by
imperfections and by the nature of the host crystals:
The conductivity of some semiconductors is due little amount of chemical
impurities.
Color, luminescence of many crystals arise from impurities and
imperfections
Atomic diffusion may be accelerated largely by impurities or imperfections
Mechanical and plastic properties are usually controlled by imperfections.
Based on size dimensionality, we can classified the defects :
Zero-Dim. 1- Dim. 2- Dim. 3- Dim.
Crystalline Defects
The ideal crystal has an infinite repetition of identical units, which may be atoms
or molecules. Real crystals are limited in size, and they have some disorder in
stacking which are called defects.
1-Point Defects
A Point Defect involves a single atom change to the normal crystal array. There
are three major types of point defect: Vacancies, Interstitials impurities and
Substitutional impurities. They may be built-in with the original crystal growth,
or activated by heat. They may be the result of radiation, or electric current, etc.
1-Point Defects
A Vacancy is the absence of an atom from a site normally occupied in the lattice.
They are common, especially at high temperatures when atoms are frequently
and randomly change their positions leaving behind empty lattice sites. In most
cases diffusion (mass transport by atomic motion) can only occur because of
vacancies
An Interstitial impurity is an
atom on a non-lattice site. Interstitial impurity atoms are much
smaller than the atoms in the bulk matrix. Interstitial impurity atoms
fit into the open space between the bulk atoms of the lattice structure.
An example of interstitial impurity atoms is
the carbon atoms that are added to iron to
make steel. Carbon atoms, with a radius of
0.071 nm, fit nicely in the open spaces
between the larger (0.124 nm) iron atoms.
An Impurity is the substitution of a
regular lattice atom with an atom that does not normally occupy that site. The
atom may come from within the crystal, (e.g. a Chlorine atom on a Sodium
site in a NaCl crystal) or from the addition of impurities. The concentration of
point defects in a crystal is typically between 0.1% and 1% of the atomic sites,
however extremely pure materials can now be grown. The concentrations and
movement of point defects in a solid are very important in controlling color
and deformation.
An example of substitution impurity atoms is the zinc atoms
in brass. In brass, zinc atoms with a radius of 0.133 nm have
replaced some of the copper atoms, which have a radius of
0.128 nm.
2-Linear Defects or Dislocations: In linear defects
groups of atoms are in irregular positions. Linear defects are
commonly called dislocations. Any deviation from perfectly
periodic arrangement of atoms along a line is called the line
imperfection. In this case, the distortion is centered only along a
line and therefore the imperfection can be considered as the
boundary between two regions of a surface which are perfect
themselves but are out of register with each other. Dislocations
are generated and move when a stress is applied. The strength
and ductility of metals are controlled by dislocations. Tow types
of dislocations : Edge dislocations & Screw dislocations
2-1 Edge Dislocation :
An Edge dislocation in a metal may be regarded as the
insertion (or removal) of an extra half plane of atoms in
the crystal structure.
In Ionic and Covalent solids edge dislocations involve
extra half planes of unit cells.
The regions surrounding the
dislocation line are made of
essentially perfect crystal.
2-2 Screw Dislocation
A Screw Dislocation changes the character of the atom planes. The atom
planes no longer exist separately from each other. They form a single
surface, like a screw thread, which "spirals" from one end of the crystal to
the other. (It is actually helical structure because it winds up in 3D, not like
a spiral that is flat.).
In the average crystal structure, there
are ~1012 m of dislocation lines per
m3 of crystal. Combinations of edge
and screw dislocations are often
formed as edge dislocations can be
formed by branching off a screw
dislocation.
3-Planar Defects A Planar Defect is a discontinuity of the perfect crystal
structure across a plane. Planar Defects are interfaces between homogeneous
regions of the material, they include grain boundaries, tilt boundaries, twin
boundaries, and micro cracks.
3-1 Grain Boundary
Grain Boundary is a general planar defect that separates
regions of different crystalline orientation (i.e. grains)
within a polycrystalline solid. The atoms in the grain
boundary will not be in perfect crystalline arrangement.
Grain boundaries are usually the result of uneven
growth when the solid is crystallizing. Grain sizes vary
from 1 µm to 1 mm.
3-2 Tilt Boundaries
A Tilt Boundary, between two slightly misaligned grains appears as an array
of edge dislocations.
3-3 Twin Boundaries
A Twin Boundary happens when the crystals on
either side of a plane are mirror images of each
other. The boundary between the twinned crystals
will be a single plane of atoms. There is no region
of disorder and the boundary atoms can be viewed
as belonging to the crystal structures of both twins.
Twins are either grown-in during crystallization, or
the result of mechanical or thermal work.
3- 4 Micro cracks
A Micro crack occurs where internal broken bonds create new surfaces. They
are about 10 µm in size and there is a tendency to form on the surface of a
solid rather than in the bulk. They also form at grain boundaries and other
regions of disorder.
4- Volume Defects Volume defects are Voids, i.e. the absence of a number
of atoms to form internal surfaces in the crystal. They have similar properties to
micro cracks because of the broken bonds at the surface.
