Atomistic simulations of helium, hydrogen, and self-interstitial diffusion inside dislocation cores in tungsten

Abstract

Tritium retention and microstructural modifications due to helium accumulation are two of the main concerns regarding plasma-facing materials in fusion applications. Crystal defects in tungsten (W), such as grain boundaries and dislocations, can serve as traps or channels for diffusion of hydrogen (H) and helium (He), and, as such, can affect the transport of these species. In this work, we study the diffusion of hydrogen, helium and self-interstitial atoms (SIA) inside screw and edge dislocations in W using molecular dynamics simulations. Stable sites for interstitials in dislocations are identified using a free-volume analysis and energy barriers for diffusion are predicted using a combination of the nudged elastic band (NEB) method and finite temperature molecular dynamics simulations. Overall, the simulations predict higher energetic barriers for He and H diffusion in both screw and edge dislocations compared to the bulk. However, the diffusion mechanism in both dislocations are shown to differ: simulations predict that interstitials are constrained to move in short channels inside the edge dislocation core so that long-range diffusion along the dislocation line happens only with the motion of the dislocation. In contrast, 1D diffusion of the interstitial along the dislocation core, independent of dislocation motion, is observed for screw dislocations.