Effect of heavy ion irradiation on microstructure and electron density distribution of zirconium alloy characterised by X-ray diffraction technique

TL;DR

This study investigates how heavy ion irradiation affects the microstructure and electron density distribution of zirconium alloy using advanced X-ray diffraction analysis techniques, revealing increased dislocation density and atomic displacement.

Contribution

It introduces a novel application of X-ray diffraction to analyze electron density changes in irradiated zirconium alloy, providing new insights into irradiation-induced microstructural modifications.

Findings

Dislocation density increases with irradiation dose

Electron density distribution changes due to irradiation

Atomic displacement and lattice strain are estimated

Abstract

Different techniques of the X-ray Diffraction Line Profile Analysis (XRDLPA) have been used to assess the microstructure of the irradiated Zr-1.0%Nb-1.0%Sn-0.1%Fe alloy. The domain size, microstrain, density of dislocation and the stacking fault probabilities of the irradiated alloy have been estimated as a function of dose by the Williamson-Hall Technique, Modified Rietveld Analysis and the Double Voigt Method. A clear signature in the increase in the density of dislocation with the dose of irradiated was revealed. The analysis also estimated the average density of dislocation in the major slip planes after irradiation. For the first time, we have established the changes in the electron density distribution due to irradiation by X-ray diffraction technique. We could estimate the average displacement of the atoms and the lattice strain caused due to irradiation from the changes in the electron density distribution as observed in the contour plots.