In-Situ TEM Study of Irradiation Induced Creep in Al-Sc Alloys

Irradiation induced creep (IIC) of Al-Sc binary alloy system is measured in TEM using cantilever beam methods. For measuring irradiation-induced creep, Al⁺ ion irradiation is employed. Here, various temperatures are applied through laser heating, and the increment of creep compliance, of order ~ 10⁻⁴ dpa⁻¹ MPa⁻¹, are observed as the laser heating power (temperature) increases. This IIC creep compliance in excess of 100 MPa shows the low stress creep mechanism. The microstructural behavior is also studied. In the dilute Al-Sc binary system, thermal diffusion becomes dominant for T > 400 °C, at this temperature a high density of dislocation loops are observed under irradiation. This results shows that in-situ micro beam bending IIC test on nanocrystalline Al-Sc works reliably and this is a promising method for other nanocrystalline Al alloy systems.