Diffusion creep is a mechanism of deformation that occurs in materials, particularly in solids under high temperature and stress conditions. It is characterized by the movement of atoms or vacancies within the crystal lattice of a material, allowing it to deform without the need for dislocation movement, which is a more conventional mechanism of plastic deformation. The process occurs through the diffusion of atoms in the lattice, which can happen via two main types: grain boundary diffusion and lattice diffusion.
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Permanent shape change driven by stress-biased atomic or vacancy diffusion. Different chemical potentials at differently stressed grain surfaces drive material transfer, requiring grain-shape accommodation. Bulk and boundary transport give different grain-size dependencies.