Interfacial electronic and energetic evaluation using perturbation-resolved spectrometrics for nuclear radiation resistance

¹ Research Institute of Interdisciplinary Sciences (RISE) and School of Materials Science & Engineering, Dongguan University of Technology, Dongguan 523808, Guangdong, PR China
² College of Engineering, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore 659798, Singapore

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Received: 11 July 2025
Accepted: 2 April 2026

Abstract

Based on perturbation-resolved electron spectrometrics (PRS), we derived that the radiation resistance of hetero-juncted interfaces is fundamentally predetermined by their static, ground-state electronic structure, not merely by dynamic atomic collision events. Interfaces dominated by charge polarization (CP), like Be/W (γ < 1), act as “electronic sponges,” efficiently dissipating incident energy via non-destructive electronic stopping before atomic displacements occur. The γ-factor quantifies the deviation of interfacial potential depth from the isolated constituent of the alloy, linking quantum characteristics to macroscopic performance. Conversely, quantum entrapment (QT)-dominant, such as Cu/Sn (γ > 1), localizes energy into the lattice. CP-dominant Be/W exhibits an energy density of 101.25 eV/ų – nearly four times higher than QT-dominant Cu/Sn (27.07 eV/ų). This electronic polarization and high-energy density predetermination explain the superior radiation tolerance of Be/W-based alloys in fusion environments. The work shifts radiation damage paradigms from reactive defect models to proactive quantum-level design, enabling engineered materials for extreme environments.