ToF-SIMS and ERDA study of hydrogen and deuterium in nickel-base alloys oxidized in water.

The depth profiling of hydrogen and deuterium in polycrystalline and monocrystalline Nickel-base alloys (Ni-16Cr-8Fe, wt%) was performed by Time of Flight Secondary Ion Mass Spectrometry (ToF-SIMS) and Elastic Recoil Detection Analysis (ERDA) after oxidation in simulated primary medium conditions containing 9 at.% D 2 O. The use of deuterium isotopic tracer in ToF-SIMS has demonstrated the presence of deuterium in the oxide layer for oxidation times of 300 min and 100 h. The quantities of deuterium were determined by ERDA using a 2 MeV 4 He ion beam. Finally, the penetration coefficient α was calculated, and ranged from 0.01 to 0.04. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]