Chapter 6 - Collision and Defects Flashcards
what is radiation damage?
localized disruption of the crystal lattice of a solid (defect production) by high energy radiation passing through it
what are radiation effects?
consequence of radiation damage of the mechanical and or phsyical properties of the solid
What is the energy range of the electrons bound to the nucleus?
keV to eV
What are the three main energetic particle types?
- Neutral elementary particles
- Charged elementary particles
- high energy atoms or ions
Energetic charged particles interactions are characterized by what quantity?
scattering cross sections
how are interactions between charged particles and electrons in a solid medium?
characterized by the stopping power, or energy loss per unit path length.
At what energyes is electronic stopping dominat?
high energies
What happens to the electrons when a charged particle interacts with them?
they are excited and removed from the nucleus leading to ionization of the medium along ion track. These electrons are thermalized and re=captured by nuclei
What does electros being thermalized mean?
ionization energy is degraded into heat
at what energies are nuclear interactions between charged particles and nuclei in a solid medium?
low energies
what two possible pairs do nulcear interactions (scattering) invovle?
- bare nuclei at high particle energy
- nuclei and bound electrons at low energies
What do nuclear interactions produce in solid medium?
permanent atomic displacements within the solid
What do atomic displacements cause?
physical and mechanical property changes - radiation damage and radioation effects
In hard sphere collisions what values of energy transferred are more probable?
all of thema re equally probable
What is the average energy transfered to the struck atom by a projectile?
Tmax/2
What is the average energy of an incoming neutron?
2 MeV
What does energy imparted to struck atoms by a projectile cause?
displacements from the lattice sites in the crystal of the solid (frenkely pairs) -> radiation damage
For a 1MeV incoming neutron to iron m=56 the max possible transferred energy is ? What is the average?
0.07 MeV= 70 keV = 70000eV and the average is 0.035 MeV = 35 keV = 35000 eV
What is the common name of the first sturck atom?
primary knockon atom (PKA)
What is the displacement energy?
it is the energy needed to displace a lattice atom from its site in the crystal leaving a vacant lattice site
What is the average displacement energy?
25 eV
What can the PKA cause?
it stirkes another lattice atom since M=m (atom displaced collides with same type of atoms)
What is the enrgy transfered from the PKA to the secondary knockon atom?
1/2 PKA energy (17.5 keV)
What is the average energy of the recoils of the nth generation?
one half of that of the previous generations
Until when does the knockon atoms generation continues as a chain reaction
until the energy of the nth knockon atom is less than the displacement energy (25 eV)
When should electronic energy loss (bethe-bohr) be considered? What does this mean for displcaments/?
When the energy transfered to the struck atom is higher than the energy of the projectile particle. This means no atomic displacements.
When should electronic energy loss (bethe-bohr) be not considered? What does this mean for displcaments/?
When the energy transfered to the struck atom is LESS than the energy of the projectile particle. Displacements happen producing vacancies and SIA (nculear stopping).
What big particles affect fuel uo2?
fission fragments
what particles affect cladding and sturcture?
neutrons
What particles affect structures other than neutrons?
photons (damage by compton scattering
What does the displacement energy depend on?
On the crystal structure of atoms in a solid and the PKA direction.
What does the displacement energy represents?
The average energy needed for displacements overa ll possible directions.
is the pka energy small or large comapred to the displacement energy? what does this mean for number of displacements or V-I pairs?
very large meaning that a neutron generates many tens and even hundreds of VI pairs
What two parts make an atom?
the nucleus and the electrons bound to the nucleus
What particle does the neutron interact with?
with the atomic nuclei notthe electrons
Do gamma rays interact with electrons?
Yes, pair production, compton scattering, and photo-electric effect
What is pair production?
is the process that results in the conversion of a photon into an electron–positron pair. Since photon has no rest mass, we can say that this process converts energy into mass according to Einstein’s mass energy relation E=mc2.
gamma ray -> neutron -> electron and positron ejected
What is compton scattering?
is the scattering of a photon by a charged particle, usually an electron. If it results in a decrease in energy (increase in wavelength) of the photon (which may be an X-ray or gamma ray photon), it is called the Compton effect.
photon -> electron -> recoil electron and scattered photon (less energy)
What is the photoelectric effect?
phenomenon in which electrically charged particles are released from or within a material when it absorbs electromagnetic radiation (photon). The effect is often defined as the ejection of electrons from a metal plate when light falls on it
name the two main charged elementary particles?
protons and electrons
Name exaples of high energy atoms or ions
fission fragments, accelerator produced heavy ions, recoil atoms from primary collisions.
What interactions are characterized by the stopping power?
interactions between charged particles and electrons
What is the stopping power?
the energy loss per unit path length, is the retarding force acting on charged particles, typically alpha and beta particles, due to interaction with matter, resulting in loss of particle energy. Its application is important in areas such as radiation protection, ion implantation and nuclear medicine.
What is electronic stopping?
refers to the slowing down of a projectile ion due to the inelastic collisions between bound electrons in the medium and the ion moving through it.
What is inelastic collision?
The term inelastic is used to signify that energy is lost during the process (the collisions may result both in excitations of bound electrons of the medium, and in excitations of the electron cloud of the ion as well)
At what energy is electronic stopping dominant?
high energies
Does electronic stopping excite the medium?
Yes, the electrons in themedium are excited (energized) and removed from the nucleus leading to ionization of the medium along ion-track
What happens to excited electrons that left the nucleus due to electronic stopping?
Most are thermalized and recaptured by nuclei. The energy is lost in the form of heat.
At what energy do nuclear interactions predominate with?
low energies
What do nuclear interactions produce in terms of the atoms in the solid? What is the end product?
permanent atomic displacements which cause physicals and mechanical property changes (radiation damage and radiation effects).
What are the main 4 mechanisms of creep
The general creep mechanism are (i) dislocation slip; (ii) climb; (iii) grain-boundary sliding; and (iv) diffusion flow caused by vacancies.
What is the von mises stress?
The von Mises stress is used to predict yielding of materials under complex loading from the results of uniaxial tensile.
What is DBTT?
The temperature at which there is a pronounced decrease in a material’s ability to absorb force without fracturing. At this point, a material transitions from ductile to brittle. Also known as DBTT.
What is the DBTT dependent on? What is the DBTT for steel?
The ductile to brittle transition temperature is strongly dependant on the composition of the metal. Steel is the most commonly used metal that shows this behaviour.
For some steels the transition temperature can be around 0°C, and in winter the temperature in some parts of the world can be below this. As a result, some steel structures are very likely to fail in winter.
What is the displacement per atom?
is the number of times that an atom is displaced for a given fluence/flux. In other words it is the number of displacements in a given volume by a given flux.
Can neutrons, alphas, x rays and electrons all damage metals?
Yes, as long as the avaliable energy is above the displacement threshold energy
Can neutrons, alphas, x rays and electrons all damage metals?
Yes, as long as the avaliable energy is above the displacement threshold energy
What is the reaction rate a function of?
R = atom_density * scattering cross section * flux
What is the energy of the incoming projectile?
E = 1/2 * MV^2
What is the maximum energy transfered in head on collision?
T_max = [ (4mM)/(m+M)^2 ] * E