Simulating the ballistic effects of ion irradiation in the binary collision approximation: A first step toward the ion mixing framework

Understanding ballistic effects induced by ion beam irradiation can be a key point for controlling and predicting the microstructure of irradiated materials. Meanwhile, the ion mixing framework suggests an average description of displacement cascades may be sufficient to estimate the influence of ballistic relocations on the microstructure. In this work, the BCA code MARLOWE was chosen for its ability to account for the crystal structure of irradiated materials. A first set of simulations was performed on pure copper for energies ranging from 0.5 keV to 20 keV. These simulations were validated using molecular dynamics (MD). A second set of simulations on AgCu irradiated by 1 MeV krypton ions was then carried out using MARLOWE only, as such energy is beyond reach for molecular dynamics. MARLOWE simulations are found to be in good agreement with experimental results, which suggests the predictive potential of the method.