In copper and other face centered cubic metals, high-energy particle irradiation produces hardening and shear localization. Post-irradiation microstructural examination in Cu reveals that irradiation has produced a high number density of nanometer sized stacking fault tetrahedra. The resultant irradiation hardening and shear localization is commonly attributed to the interaction between stacking fault tetrahedra and mobile dislocations, although the mechanism of this interaction is unknown. In this work, we present results from a molecular dynamics simulation study to characterize the motion and velocity of edge dislocations at high strain rate and the interaction and fate of the moving edge dislocation with stacking fault tetrahedra in Cu using an EAM interatomic potential. The results show that a perfect SFT acts as a hard obstacle for dislocation motion and, although the SFT is sheared by the dislocation passage, it remains largely intact. However, our simulations show that an overlapping, truncated SFT is absorbed by the passage of an edge dislocation, resulting in dislocation climb and the formation of a pair of less mobile super-jogs on the dislocation.
