Plastic flow stability of metallic nanolaminate composites

Metallic nanolaminate composites synthesized via physical vapor deposition possess ultra-high strengths, often within a factor of two to three of the theoretical strength limit, when the bilayer periods are on the order of a few nanometers. The origins of failure in vapor-deposited nanolaminate composites at large plastic strains have not been reported in any significant detail. In this article, we present an overview of the length-scale dependent plastic flow stability of metallic nanolaminates deformed to large plastic strains via room temperature rolling.