Ion Tracks in Apatite and Quartz

166 Pages·2018·6.053 MB·English

by  Daniel Schauries

Springer Theses
Recognizing Outstanding Ph.D. Research
Daniel Schauries
Ion Tracks in
Apatite and
Quartz
And Their Behaviour with
Temperature and Pressure
Springer Theses
Recognizing Outstanding Ph.D. Research
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Daniel Schauries
Ion Tracks in Apatite
and Quartz
And Their Behaviour with Temperature
and Pressure
Doctoral Thesis accepted by
the Australian National University, Acton, Australia
123
Author Supervisor
Dr. DanielSchauries Prof. Patrick Kluth
Department ofElectronic Materials TheAustralian National University
Engineering Acton, ACT, Australia
TheAustralian National University
Acton, ACT, Australia
ISSN 2190-5053 ISSN 2190-5061 (electronic)
SpringerTheses
ISBN978-3-319-96282-5 ISBN978-3-319-96283-2 (eBook)
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Scatteringpatternofiontracksinapatitewithinadiamondanvilhigh-pressurecell,
imaged with small-angle X-ray scattering
To my parents
’
Supervisor s Foreword
The interaction of high-energetic heavy particles such as ions or molecules with
solids has many applications in a variety of different areas, including geology,
nuclear physics, nanotechnology, and medical science. Such particles occur natu-
rallyascosmicradiationorfromthedecayofradioactiveelementssuchasuranium
and thorium. With the advent of large particle accelerators around 1980,
high-energyparticleswereaccessibletolaboratoriesandutilisedforthefabrication
of new nanostructures, the study of radiation resistance of materials and treating
tumoursbyhadrontherapy,amongothers.Anearlyapplicationofthemodification
resulting from high-energy particle–solid interactions is their use in geo- and
thermochronology. Natural impurities of uranium that occur in minerals undergo
fission related to well-understood decay laws. The high-energy fission fragments
released during that process create long damage tracks, so-called fission tracks in
the mineral that are highly susceptible to chemical etching. The number and size
distribution of etched tracks can be related to the age and thermal history of the
mineral, the latter resulting from shrinkage of the track damage when exposed to
elevated temperatures. Etched fission tracks are used for determining the age and
thermal history of Earth’s crust and taken together with other techniques, to infer
rates of tectonic uplift and landscape evolution. The technique utilises empirical
models that are calibrated against standard minerals from areas with well-known
geological history. The etching, however, erases the damage structure such that
information on the actual radiation damage in the crystal is lost. Little is known
about the primary, latent damage track, and how its morphology depends on
geologicalparameterssuchaspressure,temperature,andmineralcomposition.Itis
this missing information that is required in order to fully interpret and explain the
details of fission-track dating and interpretation of etched track distributions. The
quantitative analysis of un-etched track distributions with the required precision,
however, is very challenging due to the small size and high aspect ratio of the
damagedregionsandtechnicalchallengesofmonitoringtracksinhigh-temperature
and high-pressure environments.
ix
x Supervisor’sForeword
In his Ph.D. work, Daniel Schauries addressed this problem by using
synchrotron-based small-angle scattering to study the morphology of ion tracks in
minerals and how the formation and annealing depend on important geological
parameterssuchastemperature,pressure,andcrystalorientation.Thisincludedthe
implementation of innovative in situ measurements under high-pressure and
high-temperature conditions that ultimately lead to resolving open controversies in
the relevant literature. His studies are not only important for fission-track geo- and
thermochronology but significantly contribute to a better understanding of the
processofiontrackformationwhichisextremelycomplexanddespiteitsdiscovery
more than 50 years ago still far from being fully understood. Liaising with world
leaders in molecular dynamics simulation of radiation effects in materials, he has
made a seminal contribution to the field with his work. The implementation of the
novel analytical in situ techniques opens up new opportunities for studying mate-
rials under extreme conditions that are useful far beyond the topic of his investi-
gations. Daniel’s thesis gives a thorough introduction into the field of ion track
physics with a focus on geological applications and describes in detail the
small-angle scattering technique. I trust it will be interesting for scientists from
manyareaswithaninterestinradiationeffectsandusefulforresearchersusingthe
small-angle scattering technique. I am delighted that Springer is publishing this
outstanding thesis.
Canberra, Australia Patrick Kluth
June, 2018
Abstract
Interactionbetween high-energeticparticles and matter typically leads tostructural
damage of the irradiated material. Swift heavy ions predominantly interact with a
solid by exciting its electrons. The energy transfer from the electrons to the atoms
canleadtotheformationofso-callediontracks.Theserepresentdamageregionsof
cylindricalshape,whichsurroundtheentirelengthoftheiontrajectorywitharadial
size of several nanometres. In materials science, ion tracks are utilised for a wide
rangeofapplications,fromthedetectionofradiationtothefabricationofnano-pore
filters or nano-electronic devices.
In geology, similar tracks occur naturally in minerals from the spontaneous
fissionofradioactiveimpurities.Thesefissiontrackscanpartiallyannealandshrink
inlengthwhenexposedtoelevatedtemperatures.Inthisway,thethermalhistoryof
a rock can be determined. Fission tracks within rocks from thousands of metres
below the Earth’s surface have inevitably experienced high pressures of several
thousandatmospheres.However,pressureisgenerallynottakenintoaccountwhen
investigating fission tracks.
The present work shows a detailed investigation of ion tracks in apatite and
quartz, specifically a characterisation of their structure, formation, and thermal
stabilityunderambientandhigh-pressureconditions.Alltrackswerecreatedunder
controlled conditions by irradiation with ions of energies between 100 MeV and
37.2 GeV in Canberra, Australia, and Darmstadt, Germany. The tracks were sub-
sequently characterised at the Australian Synchrotron in Melbourne through
small-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS).
Combining the ability to create tracks under well-controlled conditions with
SAXS characterisation, track formation in high-pressure and high-temperature
environmentswasstudied.Thesizeofthetrackradiishowedapositivecorrelation
withtemperatureandpressure.InsituSAXSwasusedtomonitorthesizeoftheion
tracks during thermal annealing. For tracks in quartz, an anisotropic annealing
behaviour was found, depending on the direction of the tracks within the crystal
lattice. To study thermal track annealing at high pressures, apatite samples were
annealed in heatable diamond anvil cells. An increase in annealing rate was
demonstrated and attributed to the high-pressure environment.
xi