Bridging the Gap between Bulk Compression and Indentation Test on Room-Temperature Plasticity in Oxides: Case Study on SrTiO3

Dislocation-based functionalities in inorganic ceramics and semiconductors are drawing increasing attention, contrasting the conventional belief that the majority of ceramic materials are brittle at room temperature. Understanding the dislocation behavior in ceramics and advanced semiconducting materials is therefore critical for the mechanical reliability of such materials and devices designed for harvesting the dislocation-based functionalities. Here we compare the mechanical testing between indentation at nano-/microscale and bulk uniaxial deformation at macroscale and highlight the dislocation plasticity in single crystal SrTiO3, a model perovskite. The similarities and differences as well as the advantages and limitations of both testing protocols are discussed based on the experimental outcome of the crystal plasticity, with a focus on the pre-existing defect population being probed with different volumes across the length scales (“size effect”). We expect this work to pave the road for studying dislocation-based plasticity in various advanced functional ceramics and semiconductors.