Lawrence Bragg's interest in the deformation of metals and 1950–1953 in the Cavendish – a worm's-eye view

This paper recounts the atmosphere in the Cavendish Laboratory during Lawrence Bragg's triumphant final years there through the eyes and the work of a young research student, and hence reflects some measure of Bragg's personality. The opportunity is taken to deal in detail with Bragg's contribution to our understanding of crystal plasticity, which is seldom described, being overshadowed by his many superb contributions to the determination of crystal structure. Bragg produced in 1940-1942, through his development of the bubble model of a crystal structure, the first demonstration of how crystal dislocations move. His suggestion of the use of microbeams led rather directly to the development of modern thin-film transmission electron microscopy.