Severe deformation twinning in pure copper by cryogenic wire drawing

The effect of low-temperature on the active deformation mechanism is studied in pure copper. For this purpose, cryogenic wire drawing at liquid nitrogen temperature (77 K) was performed using molybdenum disulfide lubrication. Microstructural investigation and texture analysis revealed severe twin formation in the cryogenically drawn copper, with a broad twin size distribution. The spacing of the observed deformation twins ranges from below 100 nm, as reported in previous investigations, up to several micrometers. The extent of twin formation, which is significantly higher when compared to other cryo-deformation techniques, is discussed with respect to the state of stress and the texture evolution during wire drawing. © 2011 Acta Materialia Inc. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.