Structural analysis of a completely amorphous ~238Pu-doped zircon by neutron diffraction

摘要

The structure of a completely amorphous zircon was determined by time-of flight neutron diffraction at Argonne's Intense Pulased Neutron Source (IPNS).The sample of metamict zircon (ZrSiO_4),initially doped to 8.85 weight percent ~238Pu,had been completely amorphized by alpha-recoil damage since its synthesis in 1981 at the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL).The measured diffraction structure factor, S(Q),indicated a completely amorphous sample,with no signs of residual zircon microcrystallinity.The pair distribution function obtained indicated that the structure was that of an oxide glass,retaining the Si-O,Zr-O,and O-O bond lengths of crystalline zircon.