Understanding creep - a review

A simple model based on the Orowan equation and the dynamic evolution of the dislocation structure by generation and merging of slipped areas is used to see which experimental results on creep of pure and solute-hardened crystalline materials can or cannot be explained with regard to creep with refinement or coarsening of the dislocation structure and steady-state creep. Quantitative deficiencies of the model for pure materials are discussed; most of them are related to neglection of subgrain formation.