Low energy ion irradiation was used to investigate the microstructural modifications induced in Ti 3 SiC 2 by nuclear collisions. Characterization of the microstructure of the pristine sample by electron back-scatter diffraction (EBSD) shows a strong texturing of TiSi 2 , which is a common secondary phase present in Ti 3 SiC 2 . A methodology based on atomic force microscopy (AFM) was developed to measure the volume swelling induced by ion irradiation, and it was validated on irradiated silicon carbide. The swelling of Ti 3 SiC 2 was estimated to 2.2 ±0.8 % for an irradiation dose of 4.3 dpa at room temperature. Results obtained by both EBSD and AFM analyzes showed that nuclear collisions induce an anisotropic swelling in Ti 3 SiC 2 .