Kinking in a refractory TiZrHfNb0.7 medium-entropy alloy

[Display omitted] •Kinking has been crystallographically confirmed in deformed TiZrHfNb0.7 alloy.•The initiation and propagation of kinking contribute to intensive band structure.•Kinking would exist widely in TiZrHfNbTa and its derived high-entropy alloys. As a type of cooperative deformation like twinning, kinking can improve the deformability of materials by stress relaxation and crystal reorientation. In this work, kinking with 〈0 1 1〉 lattice rotation axis was identified in a refractory TiZrHfNb0.7 medium-entropy alloy (MEA). Through intragranular misorientation axis (IGMA) analysis, the {1 1 2} 〈1 1 1〉 dislocation slip was determined. The formation of intensive band structure in 70% cold rolled alloy was attributed to continuous nucleation and propagation of kink bands in coarse grains.