Specifics of adsorption and chemical processes on the surface of gamma-irradiated vanadium dioxide

The effect of γ-irradiation on the electrophysical properties and processes of thermal desorption of water from the surface of vanadium oxides V₂O₃-VO_2?δ-VO_2+δ-V₂O₅ were studied by the thermal analysis and electric conductivity techniques. It was shown that the amount of adsorbed water on the surface and the phase composition of the surface changed under exposure to low doses. The observed effects for vanadium oxides as semiconductors were correlated with analogous processes for alumina as a dielectric. It was found that the surface conductivity in irradiated VO_2?δ samples during the chemical reaction of ethanol with benzoic acid adsorbed after irradiation was substantially higher than that in their unirradiated counterparts. It was assumed that irradiation enhances the metal-semiconductor phase transition on the VO_2?δ surface during the chemical reaction.