Crystal dislocations

Abstract

Crystal dislocations were invisible until the mid-20th century although their presence had been inferred; the atomic and molecular scale dimensions had prevented earlier discovery. Now they are normally known to be just about everywhere, for example, in the softest molecularly-bonded crystals as well as within the hardest covalently-bonded diamonds. The advent of advanced techniques of atomic-scale probing has facilitated modern observations of dislocations in every crystal structure-type, particularly by X-ray diffraction topography and transmission electron microscopy. The present Special Issue provides a flavor of their ubiquitous presences, their characterizations and, especially, their influence on mechanical and electrical properties.