Invited Lecture
Grain Boundary Dynamics = Disconnection Dynamics

Grain boundary dynamics is controlled by the motion of disconnections - line defects with dislocation/Burgers vector (b) and step character/step height (h). The motion of Disconnection modes (b,h) are determined by bicrystallography. The relative importance of different modes depends on temperatures and driving forces and may be determined from statistical mechanics. In this talk, I will focus on the implication of disconnection dynamics for adsorption of dislocations from the lattice, grain rotation and the overall coupling of microstructure evolution and the mechanics of polycrystalline materials.