An electric current spike linked to nanoscale plasticity

The increase in semiconductor conductivity that occurs when a hard indenter is pressed into its surface has been recognized for years, and nanoindentation experiments have provided numerous insights into the mechanical properties of materials. In particular, such experiments have revealed so called pop-in events, where the indenter suddenly enters deeper into the material without any additional force being applied; these mark the onset of the elastic-plastic transition. Here, we report the observation of a current spike--a sharp increase in electrical current followed by immediate decay to zero at the end of the elastic deformation--during the nanoscale deformation of gallium arsenide. Such a spike has not been seen in previous nanoindentation experiments on semiconductors, and our results, supported by ab initio calculations, suggest a common origin for the electrical and mechanical responses of nanodeformed gallium arsenide. This leads us to the conclusion that a phase transition is the fundamental cause of nanoscale plasticity in gallium arsenide, and the discovery calls for a revision of the current dislocation-based understanding of nanoscale plasticity.