Neutron-irradiation-induced shape memory effect in a TiNi alloy

The recovery of inelastic strains in Ti-Ni alloy samples irradiated in a nuclear reactor under isothermal conditions was studied. Before irradiation, the cylindrical samples were compressed to a residual strain of 3–6% in the martenstici state at room temperature. The samples were irradiated at a temperature of 45°C, which does not exceed the temperature of the onset of the reverse martensitic transformation A _S . Irradiation with a fastneutron fluence of 5 × 10²⁰ cm^?2 is established to result in the recovery of the residual strain. The value of the recoverable strain is comparable to that observed under the conditions of the shape memory effect on heating of the deformed alloy and even somewhat exceeds it. The obtained data show that neutron irradiation can induce the shape-memory effect in the TiNi alloy. This is due to a decrease in the temperatures of the martensitic transformations under irradiation.