Influence of irradiation damage on formation of iron nitrides in α-Fe

Pure iron foils were implanted with nitrogen ions at energy of 10 keV and with 1×1017N ions/cm2. Doses of pre-self-implantation were 5×1016 and 3.7×101617Fe ions/cm2 respectively, and the iron ion energy was 27 keV. A comparison of iron nitrides formed on surfaces with and without pre-self-implantation has been obtained. The results show that radiation damage apparently influences the formation of iron nitrides. The formation and transformation of nitrides after N implantation or after annealing can be explained by a model of implantation-induced transformation.