Solving the Puzzle of <100> Interstitial Loop Formation in bcc Iron
This page shows visualizations for <100> Interstitial Loop Formation in bcc Iron.
These structures were created by Dr. Haixuan Xu, Dr. Roger E. Stoller, and Dr. Yury N. Osetsky
in the Materials Science and Technology Division at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory, in collaboration with Dmitry Terentyev at the Nuclear Materials Science Institute in Belgium.
The interstitial loop is a unique signature of radiation damage in structural materials for nuclear and
other advanced energy systems. Unlike other bcc metals, two types of interstitial loops, 1=2h111i and
h100i, are formed in bcc iron and its alloys.1 In the structures below, the orange atoms are close to their lattice positions. The atoms of other colored atoms indicate the presence of the defect in the crystal lattice.
In the top view, all atoms are shown.
In the bottom view, the atoms with high energy are highlighted. Atoms are colored by energy level. Atoms are both colored and sized by energy level. Color Legend: The spectrum from orange to blue corresponds to low to high energy. References
1. H.X. Xu, R.E. Stoller, Y.N. Osetsky, D. Terentyev, "Solving the Puzzle of <100> Interstitial Loop Formation I bcc Iron", Physical Review Letters, 110, 265503 (2013), doi: 10.1103/PhysRevLett.110.265503 posted: May 2014.
Interactive Structures
updated: June 2014.