PNNL

Abstract

Previous computer simulations of multiple 10 keV Si cascades in 3C-SiC demonstrated that many damage-state properties exhibit relatively smooth, but noticeably different, dose dependencies. Recent analysis of these archived damage-state properties reveals more complex relationships between system energy, swelling, energy per defect, relative disorder, elastic modulus and elastic constant, C11. These relationships provide evidence for the onset of defect clustering and amorphization processes, both of which appear to be driven by local energy and elastic instabilities from the accumulation of defects. The results provide guidance on experimental approaches to reveal the onset of these processes.