Molecular dynamics simulations of displacement cascades in various pure metals and alloys with differing crystal structures were reviewed. It was concluded that, for low recoil energies, these simulations had provided extensive data on the orientation-dependence and mean value of the displacement threshold energy in various crystal systems. Large numbers of recoils had been simulated for true cascade energies, and the results showed that Frenkel pair production at the end of the cascade process was well below the theoretical value for all of the metals and alloys. A new empirical relationship between Frenkel pair numbers and damage energy was proposed. In contrast with the above, it was noted that the antisite production efficiency in ordered alloys increased with increasing energy. The clustering of interstitials was a feature of cascade processes in all metals, but the degree of clustering depended upon the material. Atomic mixing in cascades was strongly dependent upon the cascade energy, and was shown to be independent of the crystal structure. The mechanisms which underlay the results were considered with regard to the highly disordered zone at the end of a thermal spike.

D.J.Bacon, A.F.Calder, F.Gao, V.G.Kapinos, S.J.Wooding: Nuclear Instruments and Methods in Physics Research B, 1995, 102[1-4], 37-46