Electromechanical coupling factor,
Radiation damage tolerance for a variety of ceramics at high temperatures depends on the material’s resistance to nucleation and growth of extended defects. Such processes are prevalent in ceramics employed for space, nuclear fission/fusion and nuclear waste environments. This report shows that random heterointerfaces in materials with sub-micron grains can act as highly efficient sinks for point defects compared to grain boundaries in single-phase materials. The concentration of dislocation loops in a radiation damage-prone phase (Al2O3) is significantly reduced when Al2O3is a component of a composite system as opposed to a single-phase system. These results present a novel method for designing exceptionally radiation damage tolerant ceramics at high temperatures with a stable grain size, without requiring extensive interfacial engineering or production of nanocrystalline materials.
- Publication Date:
- NSF-PAR ID:
- 10153706
- Journal Name:
- Scientific Reports
- Volume:
- 8
- Issue:
- 1
- ISSN:
- 2045-2322
- Publisher:
- Nature Publishing Group
- Sponsoring Org:
- National Science Foundation
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