title: Atomistic configurations and energetics of crack extension in silicon.
abstract: We report the first atomistic determination of the minimum energy path for a series of bond ruptures to advance a crack front. Saddle-point configurations on (111) cleavage planes in Si reveal a steplike distribution of atomic displacements, implying a kink mechanism which is known to control dislocation mobility. Manifestations of lattice trapping and directional cleavage anisotropy are further elucidated.
authors.affiliation: Department of Mechanical Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02139, USA.
authors.forename: Ting
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Zhu
authors.forename: Ju
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Li
authors.forename: Sidney
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Yip