Natural crystals always contain defects, often in abundance, due to the uncontrolled

conditions under which they were formed.Some properties, such as density and elastic
constants, are proportional to the concentration of defects, and so a small defect
concentration will have a very small effect on these.A defect free, i.e. ideal silicon crystal
would be of little use in modern electronics. There are some properties of materials such as
stiffness, density and electrical conductivity which are termed structure—insensitive, are
not affected by the presence of defects in crystals while there are many properties of
greatest technical importance such as mechanical strength, ductility, crystal growth,
magnetic hysteresis, dielectric strength, condition in semiconductors, which are termed
structure sensitive are greatly affected by the relatively minor changes in crystal structure
caused by defects or imperfections .

Types of defects: Point; Line; Surface and grain boundary; volume imperfections.

POINT DEFECTS:
 Vacancies: This refers to an empty (unoccupied) site of a crystal lattice, i.e. a missing
atom or vacant atomic site. Due to the energy conservation atom vibrate from his
position to another position.
 Interstitial imperfection: In a closed packed structure of atom in a crystal if the
atomic packing factor is low, an extra atom may be lodged within the crystal
structure. This is known as interstitial position voids. It only can possible when the
extra atom is smaller than parent atom.
 Frenkel defect: Whenever a missing atom, which is responsible for vacancy occupies
an interstitial site (responsible for interstitial defect), the defect caused is known as
frenkel defect. More accurately frenkel defect is the combination of vacancy and
interstitial defect.
 Substitutional defect: Whenever a foreign atom replaces the parent atom of the
lattice and thus occupies the position of parent atom, the defect caused is called
substitutional defect.
LINE DEFECT OR DISLOCATION: Line imperfections are called dislocations. A linear
disturbance, i.e. one-dimensional imperfections in the geometrical sense of the atomic
arrangement, which can very easily occur on the slip plane through the crystal, is known as
dislocation.
 Edge dislocation: This is a type of line dislocation where an extra half plain of atom
is introduced midway through crystal, distorting nearby planes of atom.
 Screw dislocation: This is also a types of line dislocation where when a shear force
applied, then one or more lattice plane dislocate from it’s original place.
following effects of screw dislocation are of great importance.

(i) Probably, the force required to form and move a screw dislocation is somewhat greater
than that required to initiate an edge dislocation.

(ii) Without breaking the continuity of the lattice, the plastic deformation is possible under
low stress.

(iii) Screw dislocation causes distortion of the crystal lattice for a considerable distance from
the centre of the line and takes the form of spiral distortion of the planes.

SURFACE AND GRAIN BOUNDARIY: Surface and grain boundary imperfections of a

structural nature arise from a change in the stacking of atomic planes on or across a boundary
and are two-dimensional.The change may be one of the orientations or of the stacking sequence
of the planes.
 Grain defect: A grain boundary defect is a planar defect thar\t separates region of
different crystalline orientation within a polycrystalline solid. The atoms in the grain
boundary will not be in perfect crystalline arrangement. It is usually the result of uneven
growth when the solid crystallizing.
 Stacking fault: In a perfect crystalline material planes are followed a regular
arrangement. When this arrangement or sequence breaks down a fault arrise and this is
called stacking fault.

VOLUME IMPERFECTION: Volume imperfections, e.g. cracks may arise when there is
only small electrostatic dissimilarity between the stacking sequences of close packed planes in
metals. Moreover, when clusters of atoms are missing, a large vacancy or void is got which is
also a volume imperfection.

THEORY OF DISLOCATIONS: SALIENT FEATURES

CLIMB: Since the line and burgers vector of an edge dislocation are perpendicular to
each other, there is one plane in which the dislocation can slip. Climb is the mechanism
of moving an edge dislocation from one slip plane to another through the incorporation
of vacancies or atoms. Climb can be either positive or negative. In positive climb, the
dislocation acts as a vacancy sink, absorbing a vacancy to shift itself upwards relative to
its initial position. In negative climb, the dislocation acts as a vacancy source.

CROSS: Cross-slip is the movement of a screw dislocation from one allowable slip
plane to another. Below is a video which explains how cross-slip work. Only perfect
screw dislocations can cross-slip, as their line and Burgers vector are parallel to each
other. Dislocations which have edge components can never cross slip.