Features of Structural Changes in the Amorphous Alloy Al85Ni5Fe7La3 under Xenon Ion Irradiation

The structure and thermal stability of the amorphous alloy Al85Ni5Fe7La3 in the initial rapidly quenched state and after xenon ion irradiation with energy of 167 MeV in the range of fluence values of 1012–2 × 1014 ions/cm2 were studied. On the basis of the modeling of defect formation profiles, the heterogeneity of the defect distribution over the thickness of the irradiated sample was found. The mean free path of xenon ions was determined, which determines the zone of maximum accumulation of radiation defects. It is in this zone that nanocrystallization with the primary precipitation of the metastable intermetallic Al8(Fe,Ni)2La was detected by electron microscopy methods. A comparative analysis of the alloy structure after quenching, irradiation and annealing was carried out using complex structural research methods. It is shown that irradiation leads to a decrease in the degree of short-range order in an amorphous matrix and increases the thermal stability of an amorphous nanocrystalline structure partially crystallized as a result of irradiation.