Heavy Ion Beam in Resolution of the Critical Point Problem for Uranium and Uranium Dioxide

Important advantages of heavy ion beam (HIB) irradiation of matter are discussed in comparison with traditional sources - laser heating, electron beam, electrical discharge etc. High penetration length (~ 10 mm) is of primary importance for investigation of dense matter properties. This gives an extraordinary chance to reach the uniform heating regime when HIB irradiation is being used for thermophysical property measurements. Advantages of HIB heating of highly-dispersive samples are claimed for providing free and relatively slow quasi-isobaric heating without fast hydrodynamic expansion of heated sample. Perspective of such HIB application are revised for resolution of long-time thermophysical problems for uranium and uranium-bearing compounds (UO2). The priorities in such HIB development are stressed: preferable energy levels, beam-time duration, beam focusing, deposition of the sample etc.