Radiation tolerance: Nano triumphs bulk

TL;DR

Nanocrystalline yttria stabilized zirconia demonstrates superior radiation tolerance compared to bulk material under simultaneous high and low energy ion irradiation, due to its grain size and damage mechanisms, with implications for nuclear industry applications.

Contribution

This study reveals the enhanced radiation tolerance of nanocrystalline yttria stabilized zirconia under simultaneous ion irradiation, advancing understanding of ion-material interactions.

Findings

Nanocrystalline zirconia shows less damage than bulk under irradiation.

Damage events of high and low energy ions do not overlap spatially or temporally.

Grain size influences radiation damage resistance.

Abstract

Materials are subjected to energetic particles in a number of radiation environments,and are hence prone to undesirable (radiation) damage.We report here the superiority of the nanocrystalline phase over bulk for radiation tolerance under simultaneous irradiation with high energy (electronic energy loss (Se) dominant) and low energy (nuclear energy loss (Sn) dominant) particles.Nano-crystalline yttria stabilized zirconia is found to exhibit lesser radiation damage (viz.degradation in crystallinity),when compared to its bulklike counterpart,against simultaneous irradiation with high energy 27 MeV Fe and low energy 900 keV I ions.This is interpreted within the framework of the thermal spike model after considering (i) the fact that there is essentially no spatial and time overlap between the damage events of the two simultaneous ion beams,and (ii) the influence of grain size on the radiation damage against separate Sn and Se.The present work besides being of keen interest for fundamental understanding of ion material interactions,also paves the way for the potential application of nanocrystalline materials in the nuclear industry where such simultaneous irradiations are encountered.