Table of Contents
What are Point Defects?
Point defects are defects in a material that occur at a single point in space. These defects can be caused by a variety of things, including impurities in the material, damage to the material, or even a mistake in the manufacturing process. Point defects can cause a variety of problems in a material, including decreased strength, decreased toughness, decreased electrical conductivity, and even increased brittleness.
Point Defect
A point defect is a localized defect in a material that has a size of one atomic or molecular diameter. Point defects are usually created when an impurity atom or molecule is introduced into the material.
Types of Point Defects
There are many types of point defects, but some of the most common are vacancies, interstitials, and impurities.
A vacancy is a point defect where an atom is missing from the lattice. An interstitial is a point defect where an atom is present in a site that is not supposed to have one. An impurity is a point defect where an atom is present in a site that is supposed to have one, but is not the correct atom.
