Abstract
Molecular dynamics method has been applied to simulate collision cascades initiated by primary knock-on atoms (PKAs) with energy EPKA = 5, 10, 15, and 20 keV at temperatures T = 100, 300, and 600 K on the aluminum surface. A series of 48 cascades has been simulated for each pair of parameters (EPKA, T), providing a representative statistical sampling. The number of Frenkel pairs NFP, the fraction of vacancies εvac and self-interstitial atoms (SIA) εSIA in clusters of point defects, the average size of vacancy 〈Nvac〉 and self-interstitial 〈NSIA〉 clusters, the average number of vacancy 〈Yvac〉 and self-interstitial 〈YSIA〉 cluster per cascade yield, and the average time τc of cascade relaxation as a function (ЕPKA, T) have been found. The level of primary damage, 〈εvac〉, 〈εSIA〉, 〈Nvac〉, 〈NSIA〉, 〈Yvac〉 and 〈YSIA〉 have been found to be higher in surface cascades than those in displacements cascades in the bulk of material under the same simulation conditions. The morphology of surface cascades and the spatial separation of self-interstitial atoms and vacancies has been studied. Icosahedral self-interstitial clusters have been identified in displacement cascades in aluminum for the first time.
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ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
The research was supported by NRC Kurchatov Institute, project #1600. Simulation software, numerical methods and point defect identification and visualisation techniques were developed under support from the Russian Foundation for Basic Research, grant 17-03-01222a. MD simulations were carried out using HPC resources of the Federal Centre for Simulation and Data Processing for Mega-science Facilities at NRC Kurchatov Institute (ministry subvention under agreement RFMEFI62117X0016), http://ckp.nrcki.ru/.
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Translated by T. Gapontseva
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Voskoboinikov, R.E. Radiation Defects in Aluminum. Simulation of Primary Damage in Surface Collision Cascades. Phys. Metals Metallogr. 120, 9–15 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1134/S0031918X1901006X
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1134/S0031918X1901006X