Small ion-irradiation-induced defects can dramatically alter material properties and speed up degradation. Unfortunately, most of the defects irradiation creates are below the visibility limit of state-of-the-art microscopy. As such, our understanding of their impact is largely based on simulations with major unknowns. Here we present an x-ray crystalline microscopy approach, able to image with high sensitivity, nano-scale 3D resolution and extended field of view, the lattice strains and tilts in crystalline materials. Using this enhanced Bragg ptychography tool, we study the damage helium-ion-irradiation produces in tungsten, revealing a series of crystalline details in the 3D sample. Our results lead to the conclusions that few-atom-large 'invisible' defects are likely isotropic in orientation and homogeneously distributed. A partially defect-denuded region is observed close to a grain boundary. These findings open up exciting perspectives for the modelling of irradiation damage and the detailed analysis of crystalline properties in complex materials.
© 2021. The Author(s).