A Course on Plasticity Theory

Plasticity Theory is characterized by many competing and often incompatible points of view. This book seeks to strengthen the foundations of continuum plasticity theory, emphasizing a unifying perspective grounded in the fundamental notion of material symmetry. Steigmann's book offers a systematic framework for the proper understanding of established models of plasticity and for their modern extensions and generalizations. Particular emphasis is placed on the differential-geometric aspects of the subject and their role in illuminating the conceptual foundations of plasticity theory. Classical models, together with several subjects of interest in contemporary research, are developed in a unified format. The book is addressed to graduate students and academics working in the field of continuum mechanics.

1 - Preliminaries
2 - Brief resumé of nonlinear elasticity theory
3 - A primer on tensor analysis in three-dimensional space
4 - Deformation and stress in convected coordinates
5 - Elastic and plastic deformations
6 - Energy, stress, dissipation and plastic evolution
7 - Isotropy
8 - Small-deformation theory
9 - Strain hardening, rate sensitivity and gradient plasticity

David J. Steigmann is Professor of Mechanical Engineering at the University of California, Berkeley.