Foundations of Physical Mesomechanics of Structurally Inhomogeneous Media

We present the basic principles of physical mesomechanics of structurally inhomogeneous media; the theory is developed on the basis of common approaches of nonequilibrium thermodynamics, gauge theory of defects, and mechanics of structured media. Within a multilevel approach, the plastic deformation evolution is considered in the entire hierarchy of structure-scale levels: at the nano, micro, meso, and macro level. Fracture is treated as the final stage of increasing disequilibrium of a solid, when the nonequilibrium thermodynamical Gibbs potential becomes zero and the structure-phase decay of the crystal occurs.