Quantifying the Dislocation Cell Contribution to the Yield Strength of 316L Steel

The present work investigates the contribution of dislocation cell to the yield strength of additively manufactured (AM) 316L steel through nanoindentation technique. The nano-mechanical response of the AM sample is properly compared to the heat-treated (HT) one without dislocation cell. The nanoindentation size effect is observed in both samples. Although the nanohardness of HT sample is comparable to that of AM sample at low indentation depth, the former is obviously lower than the later at depth where the indentation impression is similar or larger than that of dislocation cell. Utilizing Nix–Gao model and Tabor equation, the contribution of dislocation cell to the yield strength is estimated to be ~ 169 MPa, which is about 54% of the improved yield strength. Graphic Abstract