Present and future of atomistic simulations of dislocation plasticity

Statement of Significance: Zepeda-Ruiz et al. [1] is a landmark paper showing what ultra-large-scale atomistic simulations can teach us about plastic deformation of metallic single crystals. In particular, this work presents the currently least- biased predictions of strain hardening caused by dislocation interactions. The generated data is likely to become a major reference for the development or refinement of hardening laws used in models at larger size scales, such as discrete dislocation plasticity and crystal plasticity.