A multiscale approach for the deformation mechanism in pearlite microstructure: Experimental measurements of strain distribution using a novel technique of precision markers

Plastic deformation of fully pearlitic steels was investigated using a multiscale approach: experimentally, the finite element method and molecular dynamics. This paper is the first in a series of three papers demonstrating the strain distribution in uniaxial tensile deformation with high-precision markers drawn by electron beam lithography. Strain was measured at loads of 1.98 kN, 2.21 kN and 2.28 kN in tensile deformation. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) images and strain maps show the plastic deformation of cementite lamellae and homogenous plastic deformation under uniaxial tensile deformation in the area where the cementite lamellae are aligned in the tensile direction. The areas where strain was enhanced were both block/colony boundaries and the areas where the cementite lamellae are inclined approximately 45° to the tensile direction.