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DOE Pulse
  • Number 295  |
  • September 14, 2009

Electron demolition derby

Scientists were surprised to find that electrons jump between ions when material is exposed to low levels of radiation, and how the charged vacancy, shown in yellow and indicated by V+, is formed.

Scientists were surprised
to find that electrons jump
between ions when material
is exposed to low levels
of radiation, and how the
charged vacancy, shown in
yellow and indicated by V+,
is formed

The heart of a nuclear reactor. The coldest reaches of space. To harness one and study the other, we need to understand how materials are changed by radiation. Previous studies said that radiation turns a material’s atoms into ions that smash around like cars in a demolition derby, with each ion car being a hard particle with electrons firmly attached. However, an international team led by DOE’s Pacific Northwest National Laboratory and using supercomputing resources at DOE’s EMSL found that simply isn't the case. The electrons actually sit like a cloud of exhaust around each ion and can leap from ion to ion. How they leap affects the damage the material sustains.

[Kristin Manke, 509.372.6011,
kristin.manke@pnl.gov]