Intrinsic Strength Asymmetry Between Tension and Compression of Perfect Face-Centered-Cubic Crystals

The strength asymmetry between tension and compression is a typical case of mechanical response of materials. Here we achieve the intrinsic strength asymmetry of six face-centered-cubic perfect crystals (Cu, Au, Ni, Pt, Al and Ir) through calculating the ideal tensile and compressive strength with considering the normal stress effect and the competition between different crystallographic planes. The results show that both the intrinsic factors (the ideal shear strength and cleavage strength of low-index planes) and the orientation could affect the strength asymmetry, which may provide insights into understanding the strength of ultra-strong materials.