Past exam of the materials science course of the University of Cambridge 2016 Paper 1 5 b iii Solution Created 2026-10-20 Updated 2026-10-20
Take ordinary basal slip in magnesium, . In three-index hexagonal notation, denotes a vector proportional to , not a cubic Cartesian with equal axis lengths. The basal slip direction closest to the tensile axis is along ; its four-index representative is .
For ,Thus the algebraic answer isAn external crystallographic reference gives and , hence and . This is a conditional external-data estimate, not a fabricated value attributed to the supplied Data Book.[ref]
Crystal Structures by R. W. G. Wyckoff. Volume1, magnesium entry reproduced in COD9008506
The tensile axis rotates towards the selected basal slip direction during ideal single slip. As the axis approaches the basal plane, the resolved basal shear eventually becomes small; other modes, hardening and instability can interrupt the single-slip description. The boxed expression also permits direct substitution of any lattice ratio used in the examination Data Book; the numerical estimate above is explicitly tied to the cited crystallographic data. Taking a angle solely from the indices would incorrectly use a cubic metric.