The density and pressure of helium in bubbles in metals

Abstract

The energy shift of the He 1¹S₀?2¹P₁ transition, ΔE(n), can be used to determine the density, n, of He in bubbles in metals. A self-consistent band structure calculation for solid fcc He yields a linear relationship ΔE=C.n with C _th=22 × 10^?3 eV nm³. Systematic electron energy loss spectroscopy and transmission electron microscopy studies of He bubbles in Al for various He doses and temperatures result in C_exp=(24±8).10^?3 eV nm³ in agreement with theory. The analysis is consistent with the assumption that dislocation loop punching is the dominant bubble growth mechanism during high-dose room temperature implantation. The application to He bubbles in Ni indicates a maximum He density of n=0.2 × 10³ nm^?3 for which He should be solid at room temperature.     

In-situ TEM observation of the evolution of helium bubbles in Mo during He+ irradiation and post-irradiation annealing

The evolution of helium bubbles in purity Mo was investigated by in-situ transmission electron microscopy (TEM) during 30 keV He⁺ irradiation (at 673 K and 1173 K) and post-irradiation annealing (after 30 keV He⁺ irradiation with the fluence of 5.74×10¹⁶ He⁺/cm² at 673 K). Both He⁺ irradiation and subsequently annealing induced the initiation, aggregation, and growth of helium bubbles. Temperature had a significant effect on the initiation and evolution of helium bubbles. The higher the irradiation temperature was, the larger the bubble size at the same irradiation fluence would be. At 1173 K irradiation, helium bubbles nucleated and grew preferentially at grain boundaries and showed super large size, which would induce the formation of microcracks. At the same time, the geometry of helium bubbles changed from sphericity to polyhedron. The polyhedral bubbles preferred to grow in the shape bounded by {100} planes. After statistical analysis of the characteristic parameters of helium bubbles, the functions between the average size, number density of helium bubbles, swelling rate and irradiation damage were obtained. Meanwhile, an empirical formula for calculating the size of helium bubbles during the annealing was also provided.     

Disk-shaped electronic bubbles in gaseous helium

The structure of 2D anions placed on a hydrogen substrate in the presence of gaseous helium is discussed. It is shown that these structures, shaped like quasi-two-dimensional disks, are created in a threshold-like manner in the vicinity of critical density n_c～10²⁰ cm^?3, which is appreciably lower than the critical density for the appearance of spherical electronic bubbles in gas and linearly depends on temperature. Experiment confirms the existence of such autolocalized states.     

Microstructural evolution in metals during helium and proton irradiations

Abstract

Recent investigations of helium-implanted and proton irradiated metals at medium temperatures (T≤100°C) have demonstrated the importance of high energy cascade effects for the microstructural evolution. They can effect the formation and the evolution of He densities in small bubbles formed by He implantation and are important also for the formation of periodic walls of defect clusters, a phenomenon observed under proton irradiations. Experimental results obtained by transmission electron microscopy and differential dilatometry for MeV irradiations of Cu and Ni are summarized and compared with observations after heavy-ion and neutron irradiations.     

On the migration of helium bubbles

Abstract

ESR-spectroscopy was used to study free radical formation in solid, polycrystalline pellets of DNA-subunits after heavy charged particle bombardment and after X-ray irradiation. Dose-yield curves were measured at 300 K and analyzed for initial G-values (radicals per 100 eV absorbed energy) and saturation concentrations. Both parameters show a characteristic LET-dependence which will be discussed in terms of the inhomogenous distributions of energy within the particle tracks.     

Atomic origins of solid helium bubbles in tungsten

Solid helium bubbles were directly observed in the helium ion implanted tungsten（W）, by different transmission electron microscopy（TEM） techniques at room temperature. The diameters of these solid helium bubbles range from1 nm to 8 nm in diameter with the mean bubble size about 3 nm. The selected area electron diffraction（SAED） and fast Fourier transform（FFT） images revealed that solid helium bubbles possess body-centered cubic（bcc） structure with a lattice constant of 0.447 nm. High-angle annular dark-field scanning transmission electron microscopy（HAADF-STEM）images further confirmed the existence of helium bubble in tungsten. The present findings provide an atomic level view of the microstructure evolution of helium in the materials, and revealed the existence of solid helium bubbles in materials.     

Detection of excited-state electron bubbles in superfluid helium

We report on experiments in which the pressure oscillation associated with a sound wave is used to explode electron bubbles in liquid helium. Using this technique, we are able to detect the presence of electron bubbles in excited states.     

Pseudo-potential caculations of positron annihilation rates in bubbles of helium contained in the metals Mg,Ag and Au

Abstract

A pseudo-potential technique has been applied to calculate the annihilation rates for positrons in bubbles of helium gas in gold and silver. The positron pseudo-wavefunction in each case was found to be in a surface state of the metal, the exact form of which displayed a slight dependance on the density of the helium gas. The annihilation rate of the positron was the sum of a nearly constant surface rate and a strongly density dependant annihilation rate with the helium electrons. There is a trend for annihilation with the helium to be greater in metals with low free electron densities, the helium in such metals resting closer to the metal surface thus increasing the overlap of the positron wavefunction with the helium.     

Formation of helium bubbles and dislocation loops in tritium-charged vanadium

Dislocation loops and small He bubbles were observed by transmission electron microscopy in V samples which were tritium-charged to produce single α-phase and (α+ β) two-phase regions and subsequently aged up to 14 months at room temperature and at — 196°C. In the β-phase areas, large densities of He bubbles, 1–2 nm in diameter and dislocation loops were observed. Preliminary observations after 14 months of ageing showed that the loop pattern had coarsened into a dislocation network. In the α-phase areas, bubbles and tube-shaped cavities were found along dislocations and in dislocation tangles. Also, isolated bubbles which had grown by prismatic loop punching were observed. In low-angle grain boundaries bubbles were formed at dislocations. These results show that microstructures similar to those observed after energetic He implantation can form in the absence of irradiation-induced defects. It is concluded that He must be mobile at room temperature in both phases and precipitates by a mechanism which does not require He trapping in vacancies as a first step.     

Evolution of helium bubbles in nickel-based alloy by post-implantation annealing

Nickel-based alloys have been considered as candidate structural materials used in generation IV nuclear reactors serving at high temperatures. In the present study, alloy 617 was irradiated with 180-keV helium ions to a fluence of 3.6×10¹⁷ ions/cm² at room temperature. Throughout the cross-section transmission electron microscopy (TEM) image, numerous over-pressurized helium bubbles in spherical shape are observed with the actual concentration profile a little deeper than the SRIM predicted result. Post-implantation annealing was conducted at 700 ℃ for 2 h to investigate the bubble evolution. The long-range migration of helium bubbles occurred during the annealing process, which makes the bubbles of the peak region transform into a faceted shape as well. Then the coarsening mechanism of helium bubbles at different depths is discussed and related to the migration and coalescence (MC) mechanism. With the diffusion of nickel atoms slowed down by the alloy elements, the migration and coalescence of bubbles are suppressed in alloy 617, leading to a better helium irradiation resistance.     

掺He钛膜中He泡的演化研究

本文利用慢正电子束分析（SPBA）和透射电子显微镜（TEM）方法研究了钛膜内He相关缺陷的演化．实验结果表明：室温下,钛膜中的He主要形成均匀的小He泡．随着He浓度的增大,He泡的密度相应地增加．在973K高温退火后,在含高浓度He的钛膜样品中观测到大He泡的出现．实验结果表明迁移合并和较大He泡周围的级联融合共同作用导致了大He泡的形成．     

Nucleation and growth of bubbles in He ion-implanted V/Ag multilayers

Microstructures of He ion-implanted pure Ag, pure V and polycrystalline V/Ag multilayers with individual layer thickness ranging from 1?nm to 50?nm were investigated by transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The bubbles in the Ag layer were faceted and larger than the non-faceted bubbles in the V layer under the same implantation conditions for both pure metals and multilayers. The substantially higher single defects surviving the spike phase and lower mobility of trapped He in bcc than those in fcc could account for this difference. For multilayers, the bubbles nucleate at interfaces but grow preferentially in Ag layers due to high mobility of trapped He in fcc Ag. In addition, the He concentration above which bubbles can be detected in defocused TEM images increases with decreasing layer thickness, from 0 for pure Ag to 4–5 at. % for 1?nm V/1?nm Ag multilayers. In contrast, the bubble size decreases with decreasing layer thickness, from approximately 4?nm in diameter in pure Ag to 1?nm in the 1?nm V/1?nm Ag multilayers. Elongated bubbles confined in the Ag layer by the V–Ag interfaces were observed in 1?nm multilayers. These observations show that bubble nucleation and growth can be suppressed to high He concentrations in nanoscale composites with interfaces that have high He solubility.     

Nucleation of He clusters at111In in metals

Helium has been implanted in copper. Its interaction with¹¹¹In atoms during isochronal annealing is observed by the perturbed angular correlation (PAC) technique. The results reveal that the nucleation of He-clusters at the¹¹¹In site is accompanied by reactions of intrinsic defects. Therefore, in the case of Cu, where the knowledge of intrinsic defects is nearly complete, the successive building-up of He-clusters can be pursued.This work was supported by the Bundesminister für Forschung und Technologie.     

High temperature embrittlement of metals by helium

The present knowledge of the influence of helium on the high temperature mechanical properties of metals to be used as structural materials in fast fission and in future fusion reactors is reviewed. A wealth of experimental data has been obtained by many different experimental techniques, on many different alloys, and on different properties. This review is mostly concentrated on the behaviour of austenitic alloys—especially austenitic stainless steels, for which the data base is by far the largest—and gives only a few examples of special bcc alloys. The effect of the helium embrittlement on the different properties—tensile, fatigue and, with special emphasis, creep—is demonstrated by representative results. A comparison between data obtained from in-pile (-beam) experiments and from post-irradiation (-implantation) experiments, respectively, is presented. Theoretical models to describe the observed phenomena are briefly outlined and some suggestions are made for future work to resolve uncertainties and differences between our experimental knowledge and theoretical understanding of high temperature helium embrittlement.