This book is based on lecture notes that the authors developed for courses on the theory of dislocations. It is intended to be primarily a comprehensive text in the field of dislocations. For this reason, an exhaustive literature survey is not attempted, although key references are cited throughout the book.

This edition incorporates several advances in the theory of dislocations in a format that highlights key developments. New topics include a tensorial description of dislocation content, disconnection properties, curvature induced by dislocations, lattice Green's functions, conserved integrals, multipole representations of dislocations, stability of junctions, and discrete dislocation dynamics simulations. Expanded and revised topics include classical linear elasticity, the interaction between internal and external stress, solutions for dislocations near surfaces and interfaces, atomic calculations of dislocation cores, dislocation models of grain boundaries, and tensile and shear cracks.

Throughout the text, we strive to provide a comprehensive treatment of the theory of dislocations, with detailed elementary portions that can be used for undergraduate instruction, and advanced treatments that are useful in graduate instruction and for researchers in the field. The basic order of topics from the previous edition is preserved, with Part I covering dislocations in isotropic continua, Part II discussing the effects of crystal structure, Part III dealing with the effects of point defects at finite temperatures, and Part IV treating groups of dislocations. Aspects of the theory that are well founded are discussed in detail. However, the treatment of some subjects, such as work hardening and discrete dislocation dynamics in Part IV, is still moot. In such cases, we briefly outline current theories, point out their shortcomings, and suggest approaches to a general solution to the problem in question.

Throughout the book, we assume a background in mathematics through differential equations. For more advanced mathematical topics, we outline the derivations in sufficient detail for the student to derive them either directly or with the aid of a reference book, such as I. S. Sokolnikoff and R. M. Redheffer, Mathematics of Physics and Modern Engineering, McGraw-Hill, New York, 1966. A consequence of the variety of topics treated is that the same symbol is sometimes used for different quantities.