Effect of tungsten crystallographic orientation on He-ion-induced surface morphology changes

In order to study the early stages of nanofuzz growth in fusion-plasma-facing tungsten, mirror-polished high-purity tungsten was exposed to 80 eV helium at 1130 °C to a fluence of 4 × 1024 He m−2. The previously smooth surface shows morphology changes, and grains form one of four qualitatively different morphologies: smooth, wavy, pyramidal or terraced/wide waves. Combining high-resolution scanning electron microscopy (SEM) observations to determine the morphology of each grain with quantitative measurement of the grain’s orientation via electron backscatter diffraction in SEM shows that the normal-direction crystallographic orientation of the underlying grain controls the growth morphology. Specifically, near-〈0 0 1〉 || normal direction (ND) grains formed pyramids, near-〈1 1 4〉 to 〈1 1 2〉 || ND grains formed wavy and stepped structures and near-〈1 0 3〉 || ND grains remained smooth. Comparisons to control specimens indicate no changes to underlying bulk crystallographic texture, and possible explanations of the structure growth, particularly loop-punching, are discussed. Future developments to control tungsten texture via thermomechanical processing, ideally obtaining a sharp near-〈1 0 3〉 || ND processing texture, may delay the formation of nanofuzz.