Assessment of neutron-irradiated 3C-SiC implanted at 800 ℃

The favourable physical properties of SiC make it a potential material for use as containment layer in new generation nuclear reactors. The material will thus be exposed to high temperatures and fluences from fission products. The impact of increasing neutron fluence at constant irradiation temperature (800 ℃) on the properties of neutron-irradiated 3C-SiC was investigated, employing infrared reflectance spectroscopy and atomic force spectroscopy. A relation was found between the neutron fluence and the surface morphology of the irradiated 3C-SiC. The varying surface morphology also affected the dielectric parameters of the SiC.