Effective Self-Healing Behavior of Amorphous-Nanocrystalline Alloy Under Neutron Irradiation

Abstract The issue, structural response of the amorphous-nanocrystalline alloys (ANA) under neutron irradiation, has been investigated by a series of simulations and calculations. It is found that the irradiation-induced vacancies are fully annihilated by the migration of the phase boundary between the nanocrystal and amorphous or liquid zones. In addition, there is an effective self-recovery in the amorphous zone and in particular the nanocrystal region, because the nanocrystal phase is more competitive than the amorphous phase during quenching. This work reveals a unique and effective structural self-healing mechanism in the ANA materials, and will shed light on the development of new materials with high irradiation resistance.