Application of ion-beam-analysis techniques to the study of irradiation damage in zirconium alloys

L. M. Howe, D. Phillips, H. Zou, J. Forster, R. Siegele, J. A. Davies, A. T. Motta, J. A. Faldowski, P. R. Okamoto

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

22 Scopus citations

Abstract

Ion-beam-analysis techniques are being used to provide an understanding of the nature of collision cascades, irradiationinduced phase changes, lattice location of solute atoms and defect-solute atom interactions in various zirconium alloys. In zirconium intermetallic compounds, such as Zr3Fe, Zr2Fe, ZrFe2, and Zr3(Fex,Ni1-x), electron and ion irradiations have been used to obtain detailed information on the crystalline-to-amorphous transformation occurring during the irradiation. Transmission-electron-microscopy (TEM) observations have provided information on the nature of the damage produced in individual cascades, the critical dose required for amorphization, and the critical temperature for amorphization. In a study on the electron-energy dependence of amorphization in Zr3Fe, Zr2Fe and ZrCr2 in situ high-voltage-electron-microscope investigations were combined with high-energy forward-elastic-recoil measurements to yield information on the threshold displacement energies for Zr and Fe or Cr in these lattices, as well as the role of secondary displacements of lattice atoms by recoil impurities (C,O) at low electron energies. In Zr implanted with 56Fe ions and subsequently bombarded with 40Ar ions at 723 K, subsequent secondary-ion-mass-spectrometry (SIMS) analyses were used to monitor the effect of irradiation on the migration of Fe in the Zr lattice. In addition, ion-channeling investigations have been used to determine the lattice sites of solute atoms in Zr as well as the details of the interaction between the solute atoms and the irradiation-produced defects.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)663-669
Number of pages7
JournalNuclear Instruments and Methods in Physics Research, Section B: Beam Interactions with Materials and Atoms
Volume118
Issue number1-4
DOIs
StatePublished - Sep 1996

All Science Journal Classification (ASJC) codes

  • Nuclear and High Energy Physics
  • Instrumentation

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'Application of ion-beam-analysis techniques to the study of irradiation damage in zirconium alloys'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this