Investigation of H2 ions irradiation effects on Zr63.5Cu23Al9Fe4.5 amorphous and crystalline alloys

• Published in: Vacuum Vol. 241; p. 114669
• Main Authors: Lu, Yao, Zhang, Peng, Li, Na, Hao, Jinhua, Zhang, Xiaonan, Qiang, Jianbing, Mei, Xianxiu
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Elsevier Ltd 01.11.2025
• Subjects: H2 ions irradiation; Mechanical property; Microstructure; Zr-based amorphous alloy; H2 ions irradiation; Zr-based amorphous alloy; Microstructure; Mechanical property
• ISSN: 0042-207X
• DOI: 10.1016/j.vacuum.2025.114669

Compared with conventional crystalline materials, amorphous alloys exhibit superior radiation resistance which attributed to their long-range disordered structure, abundant free volume, and absence of defects such as dislocations. Consequently, they are considered promising candidates for plasma-facing materials in fusion reactors. However, the damage mechanisms of amorphous alloys under H ions irradiation remain unclear. In this study, both amorphous and crystalline Zr63.5Cu23Al9Fe4.5 alloys were irradiated at room temperature with 0.9 MeV H2+ ions at the fluence of 5 × 1017 ions/cm2. The peak displacement damage reached 3.2 dpa, with a peak hydrogen concentration of ∼36.8 %. Using XRD, TEM, EDS, Nanoindentation, this study investigated the microstructural evolution (including phase structure and bubble behavior) and mechanical property changes of Zr63.5Cu23Al9Fe4.5 amorphous and crystalline alloys under H2+ ions irradiation. The results indicated that the irradiated amorphous alloy maintained its disordered structure, while the crystalline alloy underwent partial amorphization, transforming into an amorphous-crystalline composite after irradiation. Notably, the irradiation-induced amorphous regions in crystalline alloy retained inhomogeneous elemental distribution similar to that observed prior to irradiation. After irradiation, bubbles were observed in both materials. The amorphous and crystalline alloys exhibited bubble layer depths of 6.4 μm and 6.1 μm, respectively, with average bubble sizes of 6.09 nm and 4.19 nm, and bubble densities of 1.8/nm2 and 2.04/nm2. In contrast to the homogeneous bubble distribution in the amorphous alloy, bubbles in the crystalline alloy tended to aggregate along the grain and phase boundaries. Nanoindentation results revealed irradiation-induced changes in hardness and serrated flow behavior for amorphous and crystalline alloys. Importantly, the amorphous alloy exhibited clear post-irradiation softening, which was attributed to the generation of excessive free volume under irradiation. In the crystalline alloy, softening was mainly related to grain boundary annihilation. Additionally, serrated flow behavior was observed in both types of irradiated alloys. In the irradiated amorphous alloys, serrated flow behavior was weaker and plastic deformation was more homogeneous. Due to crystalline alloy formed amorphous-crystalline composite structure, the interfaces effectively hindered shear band propagation and suppressed the formation of mature shear bands, with virtually no pop-in events exceeding 2 nm in size being detected. •Irradiation effect of same-component Zr-based amorphous and crystalline were studied.•Two alloys with different intrinsic structures exhibited different bubble behaviors.•Partial amorphization occurred in H2 ions irradiated Zr-based crystalline alloy.•Irradiation induced amorphization retained inhomogeneous element distribution.•Amorphous-crystalline composite structure showed weaker serrated flow behavior.