Abstract: Fricke gel dosimeters produced with a matrix of Poly-vinyl alcohol (PVA) cross-linked with glutaraldehyde (GTA) were analyzed with magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). Previous studies based on spectrophotometry showed valuable dosimetric features of these gels in terms of X-ray sensitivity and diffusion of the ferric ions produced after irradiation. In this study, MRI was performed on the gels at 1.5 T with a clinical scanner in order to optimize the acquisition parameters and obtain high contrast between irradiated and non-irradiated samples. The PVA gels were found to offer good linearity in the range of 0–10 Gy and a stable signal for several hours after irradiation. The sensitivity was about 40% higher compared to gels produced with agarose as gelling agent. The effect of xylenol orange (XO) on the MRI signal was also investigated: gel dosimeters made without XO show higher sensitivity to x-rays than those made with XO. The dosimetric accuracy of the 3D gels was investigated by comparing their MRI response to percentage depth dose and transversal dose profile measurements made with an ionization chamber in a water phantom. The comparison of PVA-GTA gels with and without XO showed that the chelating agent reduces the MRI sensitivity of the gels. Depth-dose and transversal dose profiles acquired by PVA-GTA gels without XO are more accurate and consistent with the ionization chamber data. However, diffusion effects hinder accurate measurements in the steep dose gradient regions and they should be further reduced by modifying the gel matrix and/or by minimizing the delay between irradiation and imaging.

Abstract: This paper reports the influences of gamma radiation on the structural, electrical, and chemical characteristics of erbium oxide (Er2O3) thin films and the possible mechanisms underlying these irradiation-induced effects. The crystallographic and morphological modifications under gamma irradiation were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD) and atomic force microscopy (AFM), respectively, while radiation influences on electrochemical characteristics were analyzed by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). Furthermore, changes in electrical characteristics were analyzed on the basis of capacitance-voltage (C-V) and conductance-voltage (G/ω-V) measurements. The XRD results demonstrated that small atomic displacement was observed and that the grain size of the nanostructure slightly increased. Improvements in surface roughness were observed in AFM measurements. The observed variations in the XRD and AFM measurements can be attributed to the radiation-induced local heating and microscopic atomic mobility. In addition, the XPS analysis obviously demonstrated that the oxygen vacancies increased with irradiation dose because of the breaking of Er2O3 and ErxOy bonds. Significant influences of the generated oxygen vacancies on the electrical measurements were observed, and the radiation-induced hole traps, which caused large flat band shifts, can be attributed to the generated oxygen vacancies. The results show that radiation does not degrade the physical characteristics significantly, but the generation of oxygen vacancies considerably increases the electrical sensitivity of the Er2O3 dielectric.

Abstract: The optical absorption and thermally stimulated luminescence of Al2O3 (sapphire) single crystals irradiated with swift heavy ions (SHI) 238U with energy 2.4 GeV is studied with the focus on the thermal annealing of the F-type centers in a wide temperature range of 400–1500 K. Its theoretical analysis allows us to obtain activation energies and pre-exponentials of the interstitial oxygen ion migration, which recombine with both types of immobile electron centers (F and F+ centers). A comparison of these kinetics parameters with literature data for a neutron-irradiated sapphire shows their similarity and thus supports the use of SHI-irradiation for modeling the neutron irradiation.

Abstract: The cross sections of the 68Zn(p,2p)67Cu, 68Zn(p,2n)67Ga and 68Zn(p,3n)66Ga reactions were measured at the ARRONAX facility by using the 70 MeV cyclotron, with particular attention to the production of the theranostic radionuclide 67Cu. Enriched 68Zn material was electroplated on silver backing and exposed to a low-intensity proton beam by using the stacked-foils target method. Since 67Cu and 67Ga radionuclides have similar half-lives and same γ-lines (they both decay to 67Zn), a radiochemical process aimed at Cu/Ga separation was mandatory to avoid interferences in γ-spectrometry measurements. A simple chemical procedure having a high separation efficiency (>99%) was developed and monitored during each foil processing, thanks to the tracer isotopes 61Cu and 66Ga. Nuclear cross sections were measured in the energy range 35–70 MeV by using reference reactions recommended by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) to monitor beam flux. In comparison with literature data a general good agreement on the trend of the nuclear reactions was noted, especially with latest measurements, but slightly lower values were obtained in case of 67Cu. Experimental results of the 68Zn(p,2p)67Cu, 68Zn(p,2n)67Ga and 68Zn(p,3n)66Ga reactions were also compared with the theoretical values estimated by using the software TALYS. The production yield of the theranostic radionuclide 67Cu was estimated considering the results obtained in this work.

Abstract: W–2%Y2O3 composites were prepared by wet chemical and powder metallurgy. Commercial roll tungsten was selected as a comparative sample in the He+ irradiation experiment. The experiment was conducted under He+ beam energy of 50 eV, irradiation dose of approximately 9.9 × 1024 ions/m2, and temperature of 1503–1553 K. The samples were annealed at 1173, 1373, and 1573 K for 1 h. The irradiation surface was observed in situ. The W–2%Y2O3 composites and pure tungsten displayed different grain orientation damage morphologies. In addition, the fuzzy structure was more likely to converge densely at the phase interface. Annealing repairs material surface irradiation damage, whereas the phase interface acts as a He+ migration channel.

Abstract: The luminiscence characteristics of thermoluminscence dosimeter LiF: Mg, Ti (TLD-100) irradiated to X-rays from 6 MV linac have been studied for wide range of 2–50 K/s readout linear heating rates. The reproducibility of glow curves for TLDs is found to be better at lower heating rates and depreciate at higher heating rates. The glow curve spectra were analysed using deconvolution procedure based on general-order kinetics. Shift in the peak maximum temperature per unit rise in heating rate for various peaks were found to decrease with heating rate. The TLDs irradiated with same dose exhibit decreasing TL counts with increase in the heating rate, which indicate the thermal quenching effect in TLD-100. The value of activation energy for each peak within the glow curve increases with heating rate. Calibration curves plotted for the dose range 0.4–1020 cGy exhibit decreasing slope with increasing readout heating rate. Corrections for temperature lag between the heating element and the dosimeter, and the effective heating rate (βeff) across the sample estimated using formulation proposed by Kitis and Tuyn and are found to be fairly applicable.

Abstract: Methodological possibilities of positron annihilation lifetime (PAL) spectroscopy are examined to parameterize free-volume structural evolution processes in some nanostructurized substances obeying conversion from positronium (Ps) decaying to positron trapping. Unlike conventional x3-term fitting analysis based on admixed positron trapping and Ps decaying, the effect of nanostructurization is considered as occurring due to conversion from preferential Ps decaying in initial host matrix to positron trapping in modified (nanostructurized) host-guest matrix. The developed approach referred to as x3-x2-CDA (coupling decomposition algorithm) allows estimation defect-free bulk and defect-specific positron lifetimes of free-volume elements responsible for nanostructurization. The applicability of this approach is proved for some nanostructurized materials allowing free-volume changes through Ps-to-positron trapping conversion, such as (i) metallic Ag nanoparticles embedded in polymer matrix, (ii) structure-modification processes caused by swift heavy ions irradiation in polystyrene, and (iii) host-guest chemistry problems like water immersion in alumomagnesium spinel ceramics. This approach is considered to be used as test-indicator, separating processes of host-matrix nanostructurization due to embedded nanoparticles from uncorrelated changes in positron-trapping and Ps-decaying channels.

Abstract: Nickel-doped poly vinyl alcohol (PVA) films were developed for potential application in industrial sectors like radiation processing. We report in this paper the results of an experimental investigation of 60Co source γ-radiation effect on colorimetric, structural and morphological properties of PVA films doped with 0.5% Ni2+ ions (PVA/Ni2+). The PVA/Ni2+ films were irradiated by different gamma-radiation doses varying from 5 to 100 kGy. Color modification of films were studied using L∗, a∗ and b∗ color space measurements as function of the γ-dose and post-irradiation time. The visual change in all samples was verified by microstructure analysis, Fourier transforms infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy, X-Rays diffraction (XRD) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The color space exhibited a linear dose response at a dose ranging from 5 to 50 kGy, and then it reached saturation for higher γ-doses. The calculated color changes (ΔE) show a linear dose response relationship from 9.90 to 115.02 in the dose range from 0 to 50 kGy. It showed also the activation of stable color centers. The variability of the color change did not exceed 3% during 80 h (h) post-irradiation. Furthermore, the microstructure analysis evidenced that the color modification due to the optical activation of nickel-oxide (NiO) color center were obtained by complexing Ni2+ ions in irradiated PVA films. The obtained results inspire the possibility to use PVA films for the control process in industrial radiation facilities in dose range 5–50 kGy.

Abstract: The influence of surface morphology modifications on the sputtering yield of thin Fe films by monoenergetic Ar ions is studied by using a highly sensitive quartz crystal microbalance (QCM) technique. The morphology changes are induced by prolonged sputtering up to a total Ar fluence of 8 × 1021 m−2. Atomic force microscopy (AFM) measurements are performed to analyse the sample topography before and after irradiation and to determine surface roughness parameters. Numerical modelling with the codes SDTrimSP and SDTrimSP-2D are performed for comparison. Our investigations show that by using the local distribution of projectile impact angles, as derived from AFM measurements, as well as the elemental composition of the samples as an input to the codes SDTrimSP and SDTrimSP-2D the agreement between experiment and simulations is substantially improved.

Abstract: Concentration and transport pathways of plutonium in the marine environment play an important role to assess the radioactivity as well as the ecological influence. In order to obtain the results of plutonium concentration from main sources along the coast of Guangxi, surface soil samples and sediment core were analyzed by ICP-MS. The results indicated that the concentration of 239+240Pu in the surface soils and sediments are in the range of 0.136–0.272 and 0.088–0.469 Bq/kg, respectively. The ratios of 240Pu/239Pu are in the range of 0.171–0.198, which coincides with the value of contribution of the global fallout. The sedimentation rate of Sanniang Bay (sample no. SN2) were measured by excess 210Pb, 137Cs and 239+240Pu, respectively.

Abstract: In this paper, high current pulsed electron beam (HCPEB) was used for the irradiation of TiN coating The impact of the modification conditions, including the energy density of electron beam and pulse number, on the morphology, phase composition, surface roughness and mechanical behavior of the TiN coatings were investigated with scanning electron microscope, atomic force microscope, X-ray diffraction, and conventional mechanical probes The results showed that the HCPEB irradiation melted the TiN coatings and strongly increased the surface roughness due to the irradiation-induced surface damage; the XRD diffraction peak intensity of the irradiated TiN coating was changed Moreover, for the HCPEB irradiation of energy density 5 J/cm2 and 20 pulses, the interfacial adhesion of the treated TiN coating was increased obviously

Abstract: Effects of He ion irradiation on the structural properties of multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNT) are presented in this study. We carry out MWCNT ion irradiation gradually increasing the fluence. As grown MWCNTs possess a relatively large diameter (∼80 nm) and a significantly defective structure of the external walls. This paper shows how ion irradiation affects MWNTs Raman spectra. Quantitative analysis of the deconvoluted spectral components, together with the XPS and SEM data, help to suggest changes in the MWNTs crystal lattice.

Abstract: Thermoluminescence (TL) characteristics of 5 different household NaCl salts and one analytical salt were determined to investigate the possible factors that affect the reliability of using household salt for retrospective dosimetry. Salts’ TL sensitivities were found to be particle-size dependent and approached saturation at the largest size, whereas for salts that have the same particle size, the TL sensitivity depended on their origin. TL dependence on the particle size interprets significant variations in TL response reported in the literature for the same salt patch. The first TL readout indicated that all salts have similar glow curves with one distinctive peak. Typical second TL readout at two different doses showed a dramatic decrease in TL sensitivity associated with a significant change in the glow curve structure possessing two prominent peaks. Glow curve deconvolution (GCD) of the first TL readout for all salts yielded 6 individual glow peaks of first-order kinetics, whereas in GCD of second TL readouts, 5 individual glow peaks of second-order kinetics were obtained. Similarities in the glow curve structures of the first and second TL readouts suggest that additives such as KIO3 and MgCO3 have no effect on the TL process. Fading effect was evaluated for the salt of highest TL sensitivity, and it was found that the integral TL intensity decreased gradually and lost 40% of its initial value over 2 weeks, after which it remained constant. Results conclude that a household salt cannot be used for retrospective dosimetry without considering certain constraints such as the salt’s origin and particle size. Furthermore, preparedness for radiological accidents and accurate dose reconstructions require that most of the commonly distributed household salt brands should be calibrated in advance and stored in a repository to be recalled in case of accidents.

Abstract: The High Resolution Fourier Diffractometer (HRFD) is a neutron time-of-flight spectrometer with a fast Fourier chopper and a correlation mode of data acquisition designed to study atomic and magnetic structures of crystalline materials with high resolution in reciprocal space. The HRFD was constructed in the early 1990s by a collaboration of JINR (Dubna), PNPI (Gatchina) and VTT (Espoo) and began operating routinely in 1994 at the IBR-2 pulsed reactor in Dubna. If correlation analysis is used, the HRFD Δd/d resolution is determined by the maximum rotational speed of the Fourier chopper. For Vmax = 6000 rpm, “high-resolution” patterns are measured by backscattering detectors with Δd/d ≈ 0.0015 despite a very short flight path (L ≈ 20 m) between chopper and sample. Switching to a regular TOF-mode (without Fourier chopper) makes HRFD one of the world’s best high-intensity diffractometers, capable of measuring diffraction patterns in the range of ∼1 min and less. In this paper, the experience of using HRFD at IBR-2 is considered and a possible solution for some technical and methodical problems of Fourier diffractometry at a long-pulse neutron source recognized during its operation is discussed. New possibilities appearing after the recent substantial HRFD upgrade and further perspectives on the method are also presented.

Abstract: We study theoretically the angular momentum of radiation emitted at axial channeling of the fast particles in a crystal or in a bunch of micro- or nanotubes placed in strong magnetic field. It is shown that high energy particles channeled in the presence of magnetic field are effective source of vortex radiation in the X-ray and gamma-range of photons energies. We show that there are two factors that increase the angular momentum of emitted radiation in the presence of magnetic field. First, the magnetic field favours additional “twisting” of the channeled particles in a certain direction and, secondly, the particles that have the corresponding initial angular momentum are predominantly captured into the channeling mode. Dependence of the angular momentum of radiation on the value of magnetic field and on the incident angle is studied.

Abstract: Lithium magnesium phosphate (LiMgPO4) based phosphors have been found to be quite promising for optically stimulated luminescence (OSL) dosimetry. These phosphors have unique characteristic of linearity over a range of nine orders of magnitude of dose. However, the thermally stimulated luminescence (TL) and OSL signals of these phosphors fade with time. This constraint has limited the applicability of this phosphor in dosimetric application. This paper attempts to understand the cause and nature of fading. This paper also reports the synthesise of a new LiMgPO4 based phosphor with less fading.

Abstract: To understand the effect of helium ion irradiation on the microstructure and mechanical properties of tungsten (W), recrystallized W is irradiated by 80 keV helium ions with fluence of 3 × 1015, 3 × 1016 and 3 × 1017 ions/cm2. Transmission electron microscope (TEM) observation suggests that large numbers of dislocation loops are generated in W and the size of the dislocation loop increases with irradiation fluence. The results of micro-hardness and nanoindentation show that the irradiation hardening can be clearly detected after helium ion bombardment with displacements per atom (dpa) of

Abstract: This paper presents the characterization of the electrically active defects created by epithermal and fast neutrons in epitaxial n-type 4H-SiC material using Laplace Deep Level Transient Spectroscopy (Laplace DLTS). While the deep level related to the carbon vacancy has been observed in as-grown material, we observed that epithermal and fast neutron irradiation introduces additional simple defect complexes, with energy levels at EC – 0.40 eV and EC – 0.70 eV.

Abstract: The irradiation hardening of Ni-Mo-Cr and Ni-W-Cr alloy was investigated. 7 MeV Xe26+ ion irradiation was performed at room temperature and 650 °C with peak damage dose from 0.05 to 10 dpa. With the increase of damage dose, the hardness of Ni-Mo-Cr and Ni-W-Cr alloy increases, and reaches saturation at damage dose ≥1 dpa. Moreover, the damage dose dependence of hardness in both alloys can be described by the Makin and Minter’s equation, where the effective critical volume of obstacles can be used to represent irradiation hardening resistance of the alloys. Our results also show that Ni-W-Cr alloy has better irradiation hardening resistance than Ni-Mo-Cr alloy. This is ascribed to the fact that the W, instead of Mo in the alloy, can suppress the formation of defects under ion irradiation.

Abstract: AlGaN/GaN high electron mobility transistor (HEMT) devices were irradiated with swift heavy ions at different fluences. From structural and electrical studies, it was found that SHI irradiation leads to a significant deterioration of structural and electrical properties of the devices. Positive threshold voltage Vth was found to increase by about 85% as a result of irradiation with 1540-MeV 209Bi ions at fluence of 1.7 × 1011 ions/cm2, while this threshold voltage value was increased by 55% after irradiation with 2300-MeV 129Xe at a fluence of 4 × 1011 ions/cm2. The maximum saturation drain current Ids was decreased by about two orders of magnitude in the device after irradiation with 209Bi ions. Quasi-continuous tracks were observed visually in the devices after irradiation with 209Bi ions. The observed defects and disorders induced in the devices by SHI irradiation were found responsible for the decrease in carrier mobility and sheet carrier density, and finally, these defects resulted in the degradation of electrical characteristics of HEMTs.

Abstract: Positive and negative shifts in L shell emission lines of 47Ag, 48Cd and 50Sn elements in different chemical compounds were determined from their recorded X-ray emission spectra in high resolution wavelength dispersive X-ray fluorescence (WDXRF) spectrometer. In 47Ag compounds, the measured energy shifts in Lα X-ray emission line were in the ranges from (0.12 to 0.40) eV, Lβ1 (0.27 to 0.36) eV, Lβ3,4 (1.10 to 4.89) eV, Lγ1 (−0.09 to 1.13) eV and Lγ2,3 (−2.08 to 0.59) eV. Likewise, for 48Cd compounds, the estimated shifts in Lα X-ray emission lines were in the range (−0.27 to 0.69) eV, Lβ1 (0.50 to 2.06) eV, Lβ2,15 (0.12 to 0.79), Lβ3,4 (−0.62 to 1.79) eV, Lγ1 (0.10 to 1.35) eV and Lγ2,3 (−0.73 to 1.75) eV, while for 50Sn compounds, the measured shifts in Lα X-ray emission lines were in the range of (0.02 to 1.81) eV, Lβ1 (0.11 to 0.78) eV, Lβ2,15 (0.15 to 1.40), Lβ3,4 (0.17 to 2.01) eV, Lγ1 (0.09 to 1.08) eV and Lγ2,3 (0.17 to 1.40) eV respectively. The effective charges (qP, qS, qL and qB) were calculated by four different theoretical methods (Pauling method, Suchet method, Levine method and Batsonav method) and found to be linear dependent with the chemical shift. Further, the measured chemical shifts were correlated with bond length, relative line-width (FWHM), effective charge, electronegativity, number of ligands and Coster-Kronig (CK) transition processes.

Abstract: The damage induced in uranium dioxide (UO2) during ion irradiation at low energy was studied by micro-Raman spectroscopy. Polycrystalline UO2 samples were irradiated by 0.9-MeV I, 2-MeV Au at 25 °C and by 4-MeV Kr ions at −160 °C in a wide range of fluences. In situ Raman measurements show similar spectra evolution no matter the ion beam used. The T2g band centred at 445 cm−1 related to the fluorine structure reveals a broadening with the irradiation damage increase. In addition, several bands ranging from 500 to 700 cm−1, which are attributed to sub- or sur-stoichiometric structural defects, are observed at the early stages of irradiation. Their intensities grow with the irradiation fluence to similar asymptotic relative values for all the irradiation conditions. The obtained Raman kinetics are compared with data from the literature on the microstructure evolution observed by Transmission Electronic Microscopy (TEM) and on the fraction of displaced atoms determined by Rutherford Backscattering Spectroscopy in channelling mode (RBS-C).

Abstract: Displacement cross-sections for an advanced assessment of radiation damage rates were obtained for a number of structural materials irradiated with protons at energies from threshold up to 10 GeV. The proposed calculation method utilises an athermal recombination-corrected dpa model with corrections obtained from simulations using the binary collision approximation model. Justification of the method was performed using available measured and systematics data.

Abstract: Molecular dynamics simulations of displacement cascades were conducted to study the effect of point defects on the primary damage production in β-SiC. Although all types of point defects and Frenkel pairs were considered, Si interstitials and Si Frenkel pairs were unstable and hence excluded from the cascade studies. Si (C) vacancies had the maximum influence, enhancing C (Si) antisites and suppressing C interstitial production, when compared to the sample without any defects. The intracascade recombination mechanisms, in the presence of pre-existing defects, is explored by examining the evolution of point defects during the cascade. To ascertain the role of the unstable Si defects on amorphization, simulations involving explicit displacements of Si atoms were conducted. The dose to amorphization with only Si displacements was much lower than what was observed with only C displacements. The release of elastic energy accumulated due to Si defects, is found to be the amorphizing mechanism.

Abstract: The present work aimed to study the dependence of precipitation of trace elements on the pH of solution. A standard solution was prepared by using ultrapure deionized water (18.2 MΩ/cm) as the solvent and 11 water-soluble salts having different elements as solutes. Five samples of different pH values (2 acidic, 2 basic, and 1 neutral) were prepared from this standard solution. Sodium-diethyldithiocarbamate was used as the chelating agent to precipitate the metal ions present in these samples of different pH values. The targets were prepared by collecting these precipitates on mixed cellulose esters filter of 0.4 μm pore size by vacuum filtration. Elemental analysis of these targets was performed by particle-induced X-ray emission (PIXE) using 2.7 MeV protons from the single Dee variable energy cyclotron at Panjab University, Chandigarh, India. PIXE data were analyzed using GUPIXWIN software. For most of the elements, except Hg with oxidation state +2, such as Co, Ni, Zn, Ba, and Cd, a general trend of enhancement in precipitation was observed with the increase in pH. However, for other elements such as V, As, Mo, Ag, and Bi, which have oxidation state other than +2, no definite pattern was observed. Precipitation of Ba and As using this method was negligible at all five pH values. From these results, it can be concluded that the precipitation and recovery of elements depend strongly on the pH of the water sample.

Abstract: Electronic stopping measurements in chemically reactive targets, e.g., transition and rare earth metals are challenging. These metals often contain low Z impurities, which contribute to electronic ...

Abstract: This study is mainly centered on thermoluminescence (TL) behavior under beta excitation at room temperature (RT) of Sm3+ activated ZnB2O4 phosphors synthesized by low temperature chemical synthesis method. The prepared phosphors were characterized by the X-ray powder diffraction (XRD) method. The effects of dopant concentration, beta radiation dose (0.115–69 Gy) and heating rate (0.5–10 °C/s) on TL intensity of Sm3+ doped ZnB2O4 phosphors and reproducibility are investigated using a lexsyg smart TL/OSL reader system. The activation energy values, E obtained from the analysis of the TL glow curve were calculated with initial rise (IR) method and peak shape (PS) method over the deconvoluted glow curves. The Ea–Tstop and CGCD methods indicated that the glow curve of this phosphor is the superposition of at least six components, which were called to as P1–P6, in the temperature range between RT and 400 °C. The results reveal that 2% Sm3+ doped ZnB2O4 gives optimum TL response, the relative intensity of the glow peak increases linearly with increase of beta dose and, the peaks of TL glow curves shift towards the higher temperature side with increase in heating rate as the total area under the glow peak remains the same. The maximum variation of reproducibility for ten successive irradiation cycles of 20.7 Gy is less than 3% from the average value and the sample doped 2% Sm3+ shows a good stability for the reusability. Additionally, the results obtained from IR and PS methods indicates that the complex glow curve is composed of six distinguishable peaks.

Abstract: The Versatile Arc Discharge and Laser Ion Source (VADLIS) is a recently established ion source for the CERN-ISOLDE radioactive ion beam facility. It offers either electron-impact ionization (VADIS-mode) or resonance laser ionization (RILIS-mode). The choice of operating mode depends on the element of interest or the required beam purity. Particle-in-cell simulations using the VSim software show that the ion extraction efficiency of the VADLIS in RILIS-mode can be improved if it is equipped with an insulated extractor plate, to which an optimal voltage can be applied. This enables optimization of the RILIS-mode ion extraction independently of the electron density. Experiments have been performed using a prototype VADLIS with an adjustable extractor plate voltage for the generation of gallium ion beams at the off-line separator as well as magnesium, molybdenum and mercury ion beams at ISOLDE. A factor >2 increase of the VADLIS efficiency in RILIS-mode has been achieved.

Abstract: Atom-scale numerical calculations were performed to investigate the damage behavior in close-packed hexagonal zirconium (HCP-Zr) by primary irradiation through a molecular dynamics (MD) study. The influences of Primary Knock-on Atom (PKA) energy (EPKA), the PKA incident direction and the ambient temperature (T) on the cascade collision were studied comprehensively. The results show that the athermal recombination corrected displacements per atom (arc-dpa) model is more accurate in comparison with the Norgett-Robinson-Torrens (NRT) model when predicting the steady vacancy (Ns). It was found that the vacancy peak (Npeak), the peak time (tpeak), and the steady time (ts) increase as EPKA and T increase. The steady vacancy also increases with the increase of EPKA. It was also found that Ns increases and subsequently decreases by increasing T, suggesting that there is a suitable temperature to maximize Ns when EPKA is constant. In addition, it was discovered that the PKA incident direction has little effect on vacancy dynamic history. It was proved that EPKA can worsen the irradiation damage in crystal Zr, but T can relieve such damage. In addition, the incident direction was found to have an insignificant effect on the damage. This study highlights that the steady vacancy concentration (C) can characterize the material irradiation damage.