Periodic defect wall structures in irradiated solids: The spectrum of stationary solutions

Abstract

We discuss pattern formation in defect distributions in irradiated solids beyond the scope of the linear stability analysis (LSA) by studying the stationary solutions of an appropriate model system of diffusion-reaction equations. It is shown that mutual recombination and annihilation of point defects by neutral sinks introduce upper bounds to the amplitude ratio and the wavelength, in addition to the lower bounds already found in LSA, restraining the spectrum of periodic solutions substantially. The predicted range of wavelengths is consistent with experimental observations.