Influence of Interatomic Potential on Collision Cascade in Tungsten

The accuracy of interatomic potential will affect the accuracy of the molecular dynamics collision cascade simulation results. In this work, five typical interatomic potentials for tungsten were selected for comparison in neutron collision cascade simulations at the primary knock-on atom energy of 10 keV and 50 keV by molecular dynamics methods. The generation of defects, the distributions of defect clusters and dislocation loops in cascades were systematically analyzed and discussed. The results show that the simulation results of the number of Frenkel defect pairs for different potentials are not significantly different in the final stable state, but the spatial distribution of defects, defect cluster fractions and the distribution of dislocation loops for different potentials have their own characteristics. The current results provide a reference for selecting potentials in irradiation cascade simulations, and a guidance for the further optimization of the interatomic potential in tungsten.