Open-Access Crystal Plasticity Finite Element Implementation in ANSYS for Dislocation-Induced Nanoindentation in Magnesium

This study focuses on developing and implementing crystal plasticity finite element modeling (CPFEM) codes on the ANSYS platform. The code incorporates a plasticity constitutive law that describes the behaviors of basal, prismatic, and pyramidal slips in magnesium, and is validated against plane-strain compression experiments and simulations using established codes on the ABAQUS CAE platform. The validated CPFEM code is applied to simulate the dislocation-induced nanoindentation response of pure magnesium across different crystallographic orientations, allowing visualization of strain distributions associated with different slips. Consistent with experimental observations, basal slip is identified as the primary active slip, whereas prismatic and pyramidal slips show varying activities with respect to the direction of the indentation. Novelty arises from an ANSYS–native CPFEM implementation that is cross-validated against published ABAQUS simulations and an experiment under a single, consistent constitutive set. This framework enables orientation-resolved mapping of slip system activity and subsurface strain fields under spherical nanoindentation, providing analysis capability seldom available in prior ANSYS–based studies.