Lorentz Force on Screw Dislocations and Related Problems

Abstract

The concept of a Lorentz force on screw dislocations, first introduced by Nabarro, is analyzed. It is concluded that the Nabarro-Lorentz force on screws and the Lorentz force of electromagnetism are not analogous, and that the term a Lorentz force on screws should be dropped in order to avoid confusion. Only when the screw is constrained to move on one slip plane is the analogy with electromagnetism complete. Total quasimomentum is not generally conserved when screw dislocations interact with elastic waves.