Effect of Irradiation on the Properties of Nanomaterials

Data are generalized on the results of irradiation of nanostructured materials (hereafter, nanomaterials) based on metals, steels, and some compounds (such as oxides, nitrides, carbides, and intermetallic compounds) by metallic and gaseous ions in accelerators and by neutrons under reactor conditions. The effects of the fluence, energy of ions (neutrons), and irradiation temperature on the phase composition, amorphization, nanostructural parameters, impurity segregation, blistering and swelling, electrical and optical properties, hardness, strength, plasticity, fracture toughness, and other characteristics have been considered. Attention is given to the fact that the consolidated (bulk) nanomaterials and isolated nanoparticles behave differently under irradiation. The results of theoretical studies and simulation (by the moleculardynamics method) of the effect of irradiation on the properties of nanomaterials are analyzed.