Published online by Cambridge University Press: 13 February 2012
Models of radiation growth proposed to date are all based on the assumption that the primary damage is produced by neutron irradiation in the form of single defects. These models do not account for the features of the cascade damage: intra-cascade clustering of self‑interstitial atoms (SIAs) and their one‑dimensional diffusion. During the last twenty years, a ‘Production Bias Model’ has been developed, which shows that the damage accumulation in cubic metals depends crucially on the cascade properties. The cascades in hcp zirconium are similar to those in cubic crystals; hence the model can provide a realistic framework for the hcp metals as well. In this work we present such a model in application to low-temperature (below 300°C) radiation growth.