Some properties of ion-implanted Li in Be

Abstract
In the light of recent experimental studies on ion implantation in beryllium metal, some of the properties and interactions of implanted lithium, magnesium and zinc have been calculated using effective ion-ion potentials constructed by pseudopotential methods. It is shown that there is a strikingly small interaction energy for Li in Be, with the result that Be is highly transparent to Li ions. The diffusion energy of Li in Be is shown to be much smaller than the self-diffusion energy of Be. It is demonstrated that these properties can lead to a quite plausible mechanism to explain the anomalous lattice sites observed for ion-implanted Li in Be.