The medfly (Ceratitis capitata) is a polyphagous serious fruit pests spreaded in Africa and worldwide. The medfly infests several plant species and causes economic losses in many crops.The problems of using undesirable chemical insecticides against medfly have forced the scientists to look for more safe pesticides. Therefore, two plant extracts, Viola odorata and Eucalyptus camaldeulensis, were tested against the adult and immature stages of C. capitata. Each extract composition was analyzed using GC-MS. Terpenoids were identified as the major constituents in V. odorata extract, while E. camaldeulensis extract contains heterocyclic organic compounds together with terpenoids. The toxicity of both extracts on C. capitata was addressed using the contact and spray application methods. The contact treatment method showed higher toxicity than the spray method. In the meantime, the pupae were more susceptible to V. odorata extract than the full grown larvae; while E. camaldeulensis extract showed higher toxicity on larvae. Both extracts affected adult flies with higher toxicity in V. odorata-treated flies. The pupal deformations were recorded in the plant extracts-treated C. capitata. The malformations of pupae included emergence of only head and thorax of the flies and keeping the rest of the body inside the puparia, decoloration of the puparium, and no emergence of the flies at all. Furthermore, the V. odorata extract induced adult antennal and wings abnormalities. Both extracts degraded within a short period of time in the soil. In conclusion, the V. odorata and E. camaldeulensis extracts might act as powerful insecticides against C. capitata.

The study explored the microstructure evolution of 6H-SiC that underwent sequential iron and helium ion irradiation with energies of 2.5 MeV and 500 keV, respectively, at room temperature, followed by annealing at 1500◦C for two hours. Following irradiation, the entire damaged layer underwent amorphization. However, during subsequent annealing, epitaxial recrystallization took place, resulting in the formation of defected polycrystalline 6H-SiC characterized by the presence of Fe-rich clusters, cavities, and stacking faults. Fe-rich cavities were found to predominantly form at the edges of the stacking faults, as revealed by XTEM. The interaction of microstructural defects is further investigated via first-principles calculations. The periphery of the stacking faults has been identified as the primary location for the emergence of vacancy clusters, serving as favorable sites for the accumulation of point defects, including Fe atoms. This behavior can be attributed to the combined effects of mechanical and electronic energy relaxation mechanisms. Mechanically, the presence of stacking faults allows for the release of elastic energy that had been stored at the boundary. Electronically, the energy relaxation arises from the saturation of C- and Si-dangling bonds. Both of these processes contribute to the observed behavior, highlighting the intricate interplay between mechanical and electronic factors in the system. The low point defect migration energy barriers in the vicinity of the stacking faults promise high recombination, which can limit cavity growth and enhance radiation resistance. The study not only offers valuable insights into the mechanism of cavity/stacking faults interaction, contributing to a better understanding of radiation damage in 6H-SiC but also demonstrates that 6H-SiC material containing stacking faults could serve as a viable alternative to 3C-SiC for nuclear application.