A reliable method was developed for transferring specimens at low temperature after ion irradiation with a cryostat for X-ray diffraction measurements. Single-crystal specimens were irradiated with heavy ions at 13K. After transferring the irradiated specimens, at low temperature without any warming, the defect structures were studied by using X-ray diffuse scattering upon annealing between 18K and room temperature. A q−4-dependence of the diffuse scattering intensity was observed after irradiation, and the results indicated that there were both vacancies and interstitial clusters which were associated with a displacement cascade. With increasing annealing temperature of the irradiated Ni, the interstitial dislocation loops grew at 200K and the radius and number of the loops began to decrease below 300K.

Radiation Defects in Heavy Ion-Irradiated Nickel at Low Temperatures by X-Ray Diffuse Scattering. H.Maeta, N.Matsumoto, T.Kato, H.Sugai, H.Ohtsuka, M.Sataka: Nuclear Instruments and Methods in Physics Research B, 2005, 232[1-4], 312-6