Study of Neutron-Irradiated Quartz Upon Heat Treatment: A Relation Between Tunneling States and Microtwins?

Abstract

AbstractThis paper deals with the study of the tunneling states (TS) in neutron-irradiated quartz. Ultrasonic attenuation measurements are carried out for a dose of 1.2 x 1019 n/cm2, before and after heat treatment at 700°C and 840°C. The data give evidence for significant changes in the distributions of the tunneling parameters upon heat treatment. These modifications provide interesting information about the nature of the tunneling states and will be discussed in view of the possible relation between the TS and the twin domains: the influence of heat treatment on the distribution of the tunneling states can be related to changes in the twin formation upon annealing.