Atomic structure of amorphous shear bands in boron carbide

Amorphous shear bands are the main deformation and failure mode of super-hard boron carbide subjected to shock loading and high pressures at room temperature. Nevertheless, the formation mechanisms of the amorphous shear bands remain a long-standing scientific curiosity mainly because of the lack of experimental structure information of the disordered shear bands, comprising light elements of carbon and boron only. Here we report the atomic structure of the amorphous shear bands in boron carbide characterized by state-of-the-art aberration-corrected transmission electron microscopy. Distorted icosahedra, displaced from the crystalline matrix, were observed in nano-sized amorphous bands that produce dislocation-like local shear strains. These experimental results provide direct experimental evidence that the formation of amorphous shear bands in boron carbide results from the disassembly of the icosahedra, driven by shear stresses. Boron carbide is known to deform and fail via the formation of amorphous shear bands, but the atomic-scale events by which this occurs are unknown. Reddy et al.study the atomic structure of these shear bands and find that they form via the disassembly of icosahedra.