Abstract:
Metallic uranium was exposed to 40 languirs of oxygen at room temperature in order to form UO
2 on the surface of metallic U. And thin layers of aluminum on UO
2 were prepared by sputter deposition under ultra high vacuum conditions. Process of Al thin film growth and its interaction with UO
2 were investigated by auger electron spectroscopy (AES) and electron energy loss spectroscopy (EELS). It was shown that the Al thin film growth underwent via the VolmerWeber (VW) mode. At room temperature, Al and UO
2 interact with each other, electrons transfer occurres from Al atoms to uranium ions, and a few of Al
2O
3 exist in the region of UO
2/Al interface due to O
2 adsorption to the surface. Interdiffusion between UO
2 and Al is observable. Aluminum diffuses into interface region of UO
2 and U. It results in the formation of a coexistence regime containing uranium oxide, metallic U and Al.