Surface analysis by GXRD and XPS in the austenitic steel DIN by nickel ions

L Castañeda

doi:10.1016/j.heliyon.2020.e04665

Surface analysis by GXRD and XPS in the austenitic steel DIN by nickel ions

Heliyon. 2020 Aug 8;6(8):e04665. doi: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2020.e04665. eCollection 2020 Aug.

Author

L Castañeda¹

Affiliation

¹ Sección de Estudios de Posgrado e Investigación de la Escuela Superior de Medicina, Instituto Politécnico Nacional, Plan de San Luis y Díaz Mirón s/n, Casco de Santo Tomás, Ciudad de México, A. P. 11340, Mexico.

Abstract

The composition changes in the close to surface of the austenitic stainless steel DIN 1.4981 irradiated at high doses. Theoretical simulations using the SRIM-2013 program show that the damage due to Nickel cation [Ni²⁺] ions irradiation of 3.66 MeV extends to up 2 μm deep in the steel under study. Then the applications of Grazing incidence X-ray Diffraction (GXRD) and X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy (XPS), Gallium cation [Ga³⁺] ions sputtering assisted, were necessary to detect respectively, any compositional changes with the depth. GXRD differences were recorded in the intensity and it's Full Width at Half Maximum (FWHM), of the austenite (111) diffraction peak, at different depths in the Irradiate Zone (IZ). Through XPS was found that Nickel [Ni], Niobium [Nb], and Manganese [Mn] were depleted it is important to highlight Chromium [Cr], and Molybdenum [Mo] were improved at the irradiated surface; such behavior was contrary to the element migration under irradiation reported for austenitic stainless steels irradiated at low doses.

Keywords: Austenitic stainless steel; GXRD; Irradiation; Materials science; Theoretical simulations; XPS.