title: Void deformation and breakup in shearing silica glass.
abstract: We study shear deformation and breakup of voids in silica glass using molecular dynamics simulations. With an increase in the shear strain, two kinds of defects--threefold-coordinated silicon and nonbridging oxygen atoms--appear as spherical voids deform elastically into ellipsoidal shapes. For shear strains epsilon>15%, nanocracks appear on void surfaces and voids deform plastically into a threadlike structure. Nanocracks are nucleated by the migration of threefold-coordinated Si and nonbridging O on -Si-O-Si-O- rings. For epsilon>40%, the threadlike structures break up into several fragments.
authors: Department of Physics and Astronomy, Collaboratory for Advanced Computing and Simulations, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, California 90089-0242, USA.
authors: Yi-Chun
authors: YC
authors: Chen
authors: Ken-ichi
authors: K
authors: Nomura
authors: Rajiv K
authors: RK
authors: Kalia
authors: Aiichiro
authors: A
authors: Nakano
authors: Priya
authors: P
authors: Vashishta
mesh_terms: D003198:Computer Simulation; D005898:Glass / Q000737:chemistry*; D008956:Models, Chemical; D012822:Silicon Dioxide / Q000737:chemistry*
chemical_list: D012822:Silicon Dioxide