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Abstract
Dislocations are common defects in solids, yet all crystals begin as dislocation-free
nuclei. The mechanisms by which dislocations form during early growth are poorly understood.
When nanocrystalline materials grow by oriented attachment at crystallographically
specific surfaces and there is a small misorientation at the interface, dislocations
result. Spiral growth at two or more closely spaced screw dislocations provides a
mechanism for generating complex polytypic and polymorphic structures. These results
are of fundamental importance to understanding crystal growth.