Comparative study of H accumulation in differently oriented grains of Cu

TL;DR

This study investigates hydrogen accumulation and blistering in copper surfaces with different grain orientations under ion irradiation, analyzing bubble growth and surface effects with or without an electric field.

Contribution

It provides new insights into how hydrogen bubbles grow in copper grains and how external electric fields influence this process.

Findings

Hydrogen accumulates near the surface causing blistering.

Bubble growth depends on grain orientation and electric field presence.

Surface modifications are linked to hydrogen bubble dynamics.

Abstract

When metal surfaces are exposed to hydrogen ion irradiation, the light ions are expected to penetrate deep into the material and dissolve in the matrix. However, these atoms are seen to cause significant modification of surfaces, indicating that they accumulate in vicinity of the surface. The process known as blistering may reduces the vacuum dielectric strength above the metal surface, which shows a dense population of surface blisters. In this paper, we investigate how a bubble can grow under the pressure exerted by hydrogen atoms on the walls of the bubble and how this affect to the surface of Cu, whether an external electric field is applied or not.