SEDL / STP / STP380-EB / STP43529S

The Nature and Annealing Behavior of Irradiation Damage in Molybdenum

Eyre, B. L.
Atomic Energy Research Establishment, Harwell,

Roberts, A. C.
Atomic Energy Research Establishment, Harwell,

Pages: 14    Published: Jan 1965

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Abstract

Structural defects are observed using transmission electron microscope techniques in molybdenum after neutron or fission fragment irradiation at about 60 C. There is no detectable change in the observable damage on annealing for 1 hr at temperatures up to 600 C, but at 650 C the defects increase in size and become resolvable as dislocation loops. These loops originate from interstitial atoms and the loop size increases with annealing in the range 650 to 950 C. After annealing at 1200 C a well-developed dislocation network is observed and only a few loops remain. No correlation between recovery of microhardness and the observable damage was apparent. Possible reasons are given for the absence of aggregates of vacant lattice sites.