Size effect on the tensile strength of fine-grained copper

We considered the effect of the thickness of copper sheet on its tensile strength. A model in which the strength of surface grains is governed by dislocation image forces, while that of interior grains is determined by dislocation cell structure, was proposed. Using a rule of mixtures, the dependence of strength on the specimen thickness was calculated. A master curve representing the calculated dependence of normalized strength on the ratio of sheet thickness to grain size was confirmed by experiment.