Defect-free plastic deformation through dimensionality reduction and self-annihilation of topological defects in crystalline solids

Abstract

As a signature of symmetry-breaking processes, the generation and annihilation of topological defects (domain walls, strings, etc.) are of great interest in condensed matter physics and cosmology. Here we propose a distinctive self-organization process through phase transitions, in which all the generated topological defects are dimensionality reduced and self-annihilated. In crystalline solids, such a unique mechanism allows a perfect single crystal after plastic deformation, which originates from the coupling of different types of broken symmetries.