Energy-minimizing structures for interfacial dislocation arrays: Non-planar configuration in small-angle grain boundaries

Electron microscope observations of small-angle grain boundaries in zinc reveal that the boundaries are generally not planar but rather take on a puckered form. A linear isotropic elastic analysis of the interactions between the individual dislocation segments making up the boundaries reveals that the interaction forces are consistent with the observed behavior which is therefore expected to be general to dislocation-containing boundaries in all materials.