Abstract
Silicon in its diamond-cubic phase is known to
phase transform to a technologically interesting mixture of
the body-centred cubic and rhombohedral phases under nanoindentation
pressure. In this study, we demonstrate that during
plastic deformation the sample can traverse two distinct pathways,
one that initially nucleates a phase transformation while
the other initially nucleates crystalline defects. These two
pathways remain distinct even after sufficient pressure is applied
such that both deformation mechanisms are present
within the sample. It is further shown that the indents that
initially nucleate a phase transformation generate larger, more
uniform volumes of the phase transformed material than indents
that initially nucleate crystalline defects.
