Radiation Induced Atomic Processes and its Spatiotemporal Evolution in Nuclear Materials

Abstract

Fusion reactors and fission fast reactor systems pose unique challenges in terms newlineof material degradation due to the high-energy particles they generate. In fusion newlinereactors, materials are exposed to intense fluxes of high-energy neutrons and plasma, newlinewhich can cause significant radiation damage. On the other hand, fission fast reactor newlinesystems produce high-energy fast neutrons, which can initiate various processes such newlinecomplicating the material degradation challenges. newlineas transmutation, leading to the activation of many decay elements. This activation newlineprocess creates long-term effects on the nuclear fuels used in fission reactors, further newlineUnderstanding the behavior of nuclear materials under extreme radiation newlineconditions depends critically on our grasp of radiation-induced atomic events in these newlinematerials. In this study, we aimed to explore various radiation-induced processes in newlinematerials used in nuclear reactor first walls, such as aluminum and manganese, as well newlineas in nuclear waste storage candidates like zircon and monazite. Our research focused newlineon emulating radiation-induced damage conditions by subjecting these materials to newlinestrain and pressure, followed by an analysis of the resulting effects using ab initio newlinecalculations newline