Irradiation test of component for radiation-resistant small sized motor

A small-sized motor with a resistance to radiation was developed. This motor has been able to operate at a gamma-ray dose of a value 700 times as high as the specification of a commercial motor. The present work describes results of post-irradiation examinations (PIEs) to evaluate effects of neutron irradiation on the lifetime of some major components of the motor such as a bearing, a magnet and a fixation agent for a field coil wire. It became clear from the results of PIEs that the radiation-resistance dose of the motor using a Sm–Co magnet will be expected to be one order of magnitude higher than that of the motor using a Nb–Fe–B magnet.