Abstract Scope |
We review theoretical and numerical advances that made phase field modelling practical for studying solidification across multiple length scales. Examples are recalled, from early applications to more recent applications in rapid solidification in polycrystalline systems. We then fast-forward to the evolution of the phase field into a periodic entity and the introduction of phase field crystal (PFC) models, which couple diffusion-limited phase transformations to grain boundaries, dislocations, and elasto-plasticity. We review PFC applications to dislocation flow, defect-assisted nucleation, and complex non-metallic symmetries. We end with a latest direction in PFC modelling that affords control of the full phase space of solid, liquid, and vapor phases and allows for pressure-control, density-induced shrinkage, and void formation phenomena. We highlight recent studies of rapid solidification of thin-film Al and Al-Cu that reproduce experimentally observed orientation gradients within crystallizing grains and provide a causal connection between defect and void formation and orientation gradients. |