Plasticity of indium antimonide between −176 °C and 400 °C under hydrostatic pressure. Part II: Microscopic aspects of the deformation

Indium antimonide (InSb) has been plastically deformed over a wide temperature range, from 400 down to −176 °C (see the companion paper: Kedjar B, Thilly L, Demenet JL, Rabier J. Acta Mater 2009) and transmission electron microscopy was used to characterize the deformation microstructures. In the ductile regime, i.e. T > Ttr1 ≈ 150 °C, the crystal deforms via the nucleation and motion of perfect dislocations belonging to the glide set. In the brittle domain, i.e. for T < Ttr1 ≈ 150 °C, two regimes are observed: for Ttr2 ≈ 20 °C < T < Ttr1 ≈ 150 °C, the crystal deformation takes place via the nucleation and glide of dissociated perfect dislocations or only leading partials, while for T < Ttr2 ≈ 20 °C, the crystal deformation proceeds via the nucleation and motion of perfect dislocations belonging to the shuffle set. In view of these observations, the brittle-to-ductile transition (at Ttr1) is confirmed to correspond to a change in the dislocation nature in the glide set, from partial-mediated plasticity at low temperature to perfect-mediated plasticity at high temperature. Another transition is observed at Ttr2 and corresponds to the glide-to-shuffle transition which is observed experimentally for the first time in a III–V compound semiconductor.