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11-06/07 :: June/July 2011
nanotimes News in Brief
73
Scientists at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory and the University of California at Berkeley conducted compression tests of copper specimens irradiated with high-energy protons, designed to model how damage from radiation affects the mechanical properties of copper. By using a specialized in situ mechanical testing device in a transmission electron microscope at the National Center for Electron Microscopy, the team could examine – with nanoscale resolution – the loca- lized nature of this deformation. © LBL
Minor adds, “Understanding how materials fail is a fundamental mechanistic question. This proof of principle study gives us a model system from which we can now start to explore real, practical materials applicable to nuclear energy. By understanding the role of defects on the mechanical properties of nu- clear reactor materials, we can design materials that are more resistant to radiation damage, leading to more advanced and safer nuclear technologies.”
D. Kiener, P. Hosemann, S. A. Maloy&A. M. Minor: In situ nanocompression testing of irradiated copper, In: Nature Materials AOP, June 26, 2011, DOI:10.1038/nmat3055: http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/nmat3055