Article ID | Journal | Published Year | Pages | File Type |
---|---|---|---|---|
7963190 | Journal of Nuclear Materials | 2018 | 20 Pages |
Abstract
Ion irradiation induced crystallization in as-deposited amorphous SiC films is investigated using grazing-angle incidence x-ray diffraction (GIXRD), transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and Raman spectroscopy. Irradiation with 5â¯MeV Xe to fluence of 1.15â¯Ãâ¯1016 Xe/cm2 at 700â¯K results in a homogenous distribution of 3C-SiC grains with an average crystallite size of â¼5.7â¯nm over the entire film thickness (â¼1â¯Î¼m). The nucleation and growth processes exhibit a weak dependence on dose in displacements per atom (dpa) in the range from â¼6 dpa at the film surface to â¼20 dpa at the SiC/Si interface. A transformation of homonuclear C-C bonds from sp3 to sp2 hybridization is observed in the irradiated films, which may be partly responsible for the observed grain size saturation. The results from this study may have a significant impact on applications of SiC as structural components of advanced nuclear energy systems.
Related Topics
Physical Sciences and Engineering
Energy
Nuclear Energy and Engineering
Authors
Limin Zhang, Weilin Jiang, Wensi Ai, Liang Chen, Tieshan Wang,