| About this Abstract |
| Meeting |
MS&T21: Materials Science & Technology
|
| Symposium
|
Advanced Characterization of Materials for Nuclear, Radiation, and Extreme Environments
|
| Presentation Title |
Characterization of Defects, Thermal Transport, and Elastic Properties in As-fabricated and Irradiated Single Crystal of ThO2 |
| Author(s) |
Marat Khafizov, Saqeeb Adnan, Joshua Ferrigno, Vinay Chauhan, Amey Khanolkar, Cody Dennett, Yuzhou Wang, Kaustubh Bawane, Linu Malakkal, Miaomiao Jin, Zilong Hua, Chao Jiang, Lingfeng He, Chris Marianetti, Anter El-Azab, David Hurley |
| On-Site Speaker (Planned) |
Marat Khafizov |
| Abstract Scope |
We investigate physical properties and microstructure evolution under irradiation in thorium dioxide (ThO2). Use of ThO2 single crystals fabricated using hydrothermal method helps characterizing intrinsic behavior of oxide nuclear fuels and eliminates complications associated with electron correlation effects and chemical complexity present in uranium dioxide. Transmission electron microscopy is used to characterize dislocation loop nature and evolution in proton irradiated ThO2 under different irradiation conditions. The nature of point defect is analyzed using optical spectroscopy sensitive to defects acting as color centers and probes their electronic structure, while Raman spectroscopy measures vibrational properties of defects. Use of small scale crystals and ion beam irradiation for tailored microstructure required utilization of laser based approaches for measuring thermal conductivity and elastic constants. Conductivity was measured using modulated thermoreflectance and elastic properties using picosecond ultrasonics. The results of these measurements allow as to validate atomic level modeling of microstructure evolution and material’s properties. |