Theory of microstructure evolution in heterogeneous materials

This paper summarizes the main ingredients of a general theory for a quantitative description of dynamical processes in heterogeneous materials under stresses, thermal cycling or current. The theory is derived analytically from the atomic scale using the principles of quantum mechanics and statistical mechanics, without any empirical postulates. The equations describe the cross-coupled phenomena of stress-induced diffusion, diffusion-induced stress, electromigration, void growth, dislocation climb, and slip.