Radiation Stability of Metal Fe0.56Ni0.44 Nanowires Exposed to Powerful Pulsed Ion Beams

Abstract

The resistance of Fe_0.56Ni_0.44 alloy nanowires (fabricated by template synthesis using polymer track membranes) 60 and 100 nm in diameter to radiation with powerful pulsed 85% C⁺ + 15% H⁺ ions (E = 20 keV, j = 100 A/cm², τ = 90 ns) has been investigated. The conclusion that nanosized regions of explosive energy release, so-called thermal spikes, which are thermalized regions of dense cascades of atomic displacements heated to several thousand degrees (in which the thermal pressure can reach several tens of GPa), play an important role in the nanowire structure change is drawn. These are observed as melted nanosized regions on the nanowire surface. Calculations have shown that energy supplied by an ion beam during the action of a single pulse in the used mode (provided that thermal radiation and thermal conductivity serve as energy sinks) can be both sufficient and insufficient to completely melt nanowires depending on their orientation with respect to the ion beam. The bending and failure of nonmelted nanowires is explained by the generation and propagation of post-cascade shock waves.