Microstructure evolution of nonstoichiometric ZrC0.6 with ordered carbon vacancies under ion irradiation

ZrC0.6 with ordered carbon vacancies was irradiated with a 4 MeV Au ion beam at room temperature at fluences of 2 × 1016 ions/cm2, corresponding to 130 displacements per atom (dpa). Grazing incidence X-ray diffraction and transmission electron microscopy were performed to investigate the microstructure evolution of ZrC0.6 under ion irradiation. The lattice parameter did not clearly increase (lattice expansion of 0.013%) for irradiated ZrC0.6, which indicated that the inherent carbon vacancies acted as sinks for the interstitial atoms generated by irradiation. The peaks of Zr2C-ordered phase in GIXRD patterns and reflections of ordered Zr2C in microdiffraction patterns of the damaged layer disappeared, which indicated that superstructure modulation of the ordered carbon vacancies for Zr2C was destroyed under Au ion irradiation, and demonstrated that introducing vacancy defects in ZrC enhanced the tolerance of radiation damage.