Reduction of the thermal conductivity of SiC by radiation damage

Measurements of the thermal conductivity were performed on irradiated SiC over a temperature range from 300-1700 K. The samples were exposed to the radiation of different irradiation sources operating with different particle energies and temperatures (KfK Cyclotron, LAMPF-SNS, Geesthacht). The results show that the thermal conductivity is reduced over a wide temperature range compared to the behavior of nonirradiated reference samples. The extent of this reduction depends not only on the damage dose or particle fluence, but is also influenced by the irradiation temperature. The irradiated samples show a decreased density which can be related to the reduced thermal conductivity. Investigations of recovery effects of the thermal conductivity are also presented. (orig./MM)