Initiation of the Shape Memory Effect by Fast Neutron Irradiation

Abstract

A sample made from a ribbon of austenitic-martensitic steel 0.3C–13Cr–10Mn–3Si–1V, pre-deformed in the shape of a circular arc with a deflection of 3 mm, was subjected to fast neutron irradiation with a fluence of 6 × 10¹⁹ cm^–2 in the vertical wet channel of the IVV-2M reactor at a temperature of 80°C. This material belongs to the class of stainless manganese austenitic steels with the shape memory effect (SME). Initially, it was expected that irradiation would reduce the SME magnitude after subsequent heating of the studied sample in comparison with the reference one. But instead, the manifestation of SME was revealed already after irradiation, with a decrease in the deflection by approximately 21%. Control experiments confirmed that the lower temperature limit for the manifestation of the SME in this material lies at 120ºC and is absent at 80°C. This allows us to conclude that the effect observed is the result of neutron irradiation.