Mechanical properties of Sialon glass after swift heavy-ion bombardment

A Y-Mg-Si-Al-O-N glass was submitted to swift heavy-ion bombardment at GANIL (Caen, France) and the influence of irradiation on the mechanical properties was studied. The mechanical properties of the glass were characterized both before and after irradiation. Changes in hardness, elastic modulus and fracture toughness of the near-surface irradiated layer were determined using indentation techniques. SRIM calculations allowed to estimate the ions penetration range and the energy. deposition relative to electronic and nuclear interactions, which can be correlated to the experimental damaged depth. Meyer's hardness and Young's modulus decrease by about 30%, while fracture toughness is increased by more than 40%.