Local structural transformations in copper crystallites under nanoindentation

A molecular-dynamic simulation of the response of a copper crystallite at the atomic level at local contact interaction has been performed. The calculation results have shown that plastic deformation is nucleated and developed according to the mechanism of generation of local structural transformations, which, in turn, give rise to higher level defects (dislocations, stacking faults, interfaces, etc.). During loading, the formed structural defects pass from the contact region into the crystallite bulk and, when emerging on the free surface, change its shape.