Effect of electron irradiation on the phase stability of Fe–9Zr–3B alloy

Effect of electron irradiation on the structural and phase stability of amorphous phase and crystallites in Fe–9Zr–3B alloy was examined. Amorphous ribbons were produced by a single-roller-melt-spinning method. Some specimens were annealed at 873 and 1073 K to obtain α-Fe and the duplex structure composed of α-Fe phase and Fe–Zr intermetallic compounds, respectively. Electron irradiation on the amorphous and crystalline specimens were performed at dose rates of 1.7×1024 and 7.5×1023 m−2 s−1. The electron irradiation accelerated crystallization from the amorphous phase, while the α-Fe and the intermetallic compounds remained stable in annealed specimens. During electron irradiation, cubic-Fe2Zr crystallized from the amorphous phase prior to α-Fe precipitates in melt-spun specimens without annealing, while the α-Fe precipitation advanced during annealing