Hydrogen bubble formation and evolution in tungsten under different hydrogen irradiation conditions

• Direct and clear observation of hydrogen bubbles evolution by TEM is provided.
• The role of temperature playing in bubble formation and evolution is fully explored.
• Vacancy trapping mechanism is verified in this experiment.

In order to see how hydrogen is behaving in tungsten and to understand the way bubbles form and grow up, specimens were irradiated by hydrogen ions from room temperature to 800 °C to fluence of 2.25 × 1021 m−2. Experimental results show that higher temperature helped bubble acquire higher internal pressure, causing interstitial loop punching to happen. In this process bubbles’ size grew and dislocation loops were formed but dislocation loops migrated away at and above 350 °C. And bubble number density reached peak value at 600 °C but then dropped dramatically at 800 °C. Because continuously increasing temperature would cause small bubbles dissolution or leaking out. Besides, high temperature also prevented tiny bubbles growing to be visible under TEM observation by their reaching equilibrium pressure before reaching threshold pressure for loop punching. In the other set of experiments, specimens were irradiated by low hydrogen fluence of 1 × 1020 m−2 at 600 °C, in which case few hydrogen bubbles appeared. With further increasing irradiation fluence, bubble number density quickly increased. Small bubbles tended to coalesce to become larger visible bubbles. And they continued to grow through loop punching until their internal pressure cannot support their size expansion any more.