A multi-exciton model for the electronic sputtering of oxides

Three models are examined for the electronic sputtering by high energy heavy ions. It is found that the charged fraction of the sputtered particles is small (less than 10% in this study) and hence, Coulomb explosion model is unsound. According to the thermal spike model, rapid thermal quenching of the melted zone is anticipated, implying amorphisation of SiO₂ single crystal (c-SiO₂). X-ray diffraction results indicate no amorphisation of c-SiO₂, suggesting no melting. Moreover, the electronic sputtering yields of both c-SiO₂ and amorphous-SiO₂ (a-SiO₂) have been found to be the same. With these results and thermal properties of both c-SiO₂ and a-SiO₂, thermal spike model is examined further and appears to be unfavorable. A multi-exciton model is suggested for the electronic sputtering.     

Atomic mixing at metal–oxide interfaces by high energy heavy ions

We study the atomic mixing at metal (Bi or Au)/oxide (SiO₂ or Al₂O₃) interfaces under 150–200 MeV heavy ion irradiation. Irradiation-induced interface mixing state is examined by means of Rutherford backscattering spectrometry (RBS). For Bi/Al₂O₃ interfaces, the heavy ion irradiations induce a strong atomic mixing and the amount of the mixing increases with increasing the electronic stopping power for heavy ions. By comparing the results with that for 3 MeV Si ion irradiation, we conclude that the strong atomic mixing observed at Bi/Al₂O₃ interfaces is attributed to the high-density electronic excitation. On the other hand, for other interfaces (Bi/SiO₂, Au/Al₂O₃ and Au/SiO₂), atomic mixing is rarely observed after the irradiation. The dependence of atomic mixing on combinations of irradiating ions and interface-forming materials is discussed.     

Light emission from oxygen covered Al and Cu surfaces

Ion beam induced light emission is used to investigate the sputtering yield, S_O, of oxygen atoms on the surfaces of a polycrystalline copper and an Al(1 1 1) target. Under Ar⁺ and Ne⁺ ion bombardment of Al(1 1 1) and polycrystalline copper targets, spectral lines of Cu I and Al I emitting from sputtered excited atoms are measured as a function of the oxygen partial pressure, wavelength and beam energy. The light emission for two Al I lines (3082 and 3962 Å) and Cu I lines (3247 and 3274 Å) are proportional to the oxygen partial pressure (1×10⁻⁴ Torr). Above 2×10⁻⁴ Torr, the light intensities start to decrease which is consistent with other measurements. From saturated-oxygen covered target surfaces, light intensities of Al I and Cu I lines are measured as a function of time and oxygen partial pressures. The sputtering yields could be determined from the curves of spectral lines directly. For 10 and 20 keV Ar⁺ ions bombarding the copper surface, the oxygen sputtering yields are 0.34 and 0.22 (atoms/ion), respectively. The same copper target was bombarded by Ne⁺ ions at 5 and 10 keV, the oxygen sputtering yields are 0.87 and 0.59, respectively. For 10, 15, and 20 keV Ar⁺ bombarding an Al(1 1 1) target, the obtained sputtering yields are 0.44, 0.31, and 0.2 (atoms/ion), respectively.     

Ion beam induced desorption from thin films: SiO2 single layers and SiO2/Si multilayers

The occurrence of O₂ molecular loss from the bulk of SiO₂ single layers and SiO₂/Si multilayers as a result of 50 MeV Cu⁹⁺ irradiation has been investigated. This process did not take place with a significant rate, if it occurs at all. Instead both Si and O are removed from the SiO₂ surface region, releasing molecular O₂. If an elemental Si layer is on top in a multilayer, removal of Si and O with an appreciable rate is not observed. The irradiation creates bubbles in the SiO₂/Si multilayers, which contain O₂. The distinct SiO₂ sublayers remain chemically intact. The bubbles deteriorate the depth resolution in elastic recoil detection.     

Electrical conductivity increase of Al-doped ZnO films induced by high-energy-heavy ions

We have investigated the effects on electrical properties of Al-doped ZnO (AZO) semiconductor films induced by 90 MeV Ni, 100 MeV Xe and 200 MeV Xe ions. The AZO films with c-axis orientation on SiO₂-glass substrate were prepared by using a RF-sputter-deposition method at 400 °C. We find that the conductivity increases by two order of magnitude under high-energy-heavy ion irradiation, as has already been observed for 100 keV Ne ion irradiation. We also find that the efficiency of the conductivity enhancement, which is defined as the conductivity increment per a unit of ion fluence, scales super-linearly with the electronic stopping power (S_e). The carrier density and mobility for unirradiated and irradiated AZO films are presented.     

Resonant coherent excitation of 2s electron of Li-like Fe ions to the n = 3 states

We observed resonant coherent excitation of the 2s electron to the n = 3 states of 83.5 MeV/u Li-like Fe²³⁺ ions planar-channeling in the plane of a Si crystal. A survival fraction of the Li-like ions was measured as a function of the angle between the incident beam and the [0 0 1] axis. Clear resonance dips corresponding to the transitions of a 2s electron to all the n = 3 states were observed. The transition of each resonance dip was identified by comparing with spectroscopic data. The resonance dips at the transition energies corresponding to the optically forbidden 2s_1/2–3s_1/2, 2s_1/2–3d_3/2 and 2s_1/2–3d_5/2 transitions were observed as well as the resonance dips at transition energies corresponding to the optically allowed 2s_1/2–3p_1/2 and 2s_1/2–3p_3/2 transitions.     

Multidimensional ERDA measurements and depth profiling of medium-heavy elements

A multiparameter kinematic-coincidence setup installed earlier at the VICKSI heavy-ion accelerator for nuclear reaction studies was used for elastic recoil detection analysis (ERDA) and depth profiling of medium-heavy elements. With Ar beams of 90 and 180 MeV, two large-area bidimensional position- and time-of-flight resolving counters (one of these a detector telescope delivering additional element and energy resolution) detected target recoils and scattered ions in kinematic coincidence. The depth distributions of e.g. C,O, Si or Fe in various multilayer matrices with up to 20 μm thicknesses were determined simultaneously. To compare resolutions, a single-detector experiment with a 365 MeV ¹²⁹Xe beam, detecting recoils in the telescope, was performed with e.g. SiO₂ and GaAs targets. The preliminary results show that the application of ERDA with heavy ions in the energy range between 2 and 5 MeV/amu is worthwhile to obtain unambiguous identification and depth distributions of medium-heavy elements.     

Low-energy ion scattering and sputtering at grazing ion bombardment of clean and oxygen covered Ag(1 1 0) surface

The ion scattering and sputtering processes at low energy grazing N⁺ and Ne⁺ ion bombardment of clean and oxygen covered Ag(1 1 0) surface have been investigated by computer simulation in the binary collision approximation.

The spatial, angular and energy distributions of scattered, sputtered particles and desorbed molecules of oxygen as well as their yields versus the angle of incidence have been calculated. In these distributions the some characteristic peaks were observed and analysed. It was found that an adsorption layer plays a role of the additional surface barrier, i.e. it reflects leaving target atoms back to crystal. The azimuth angular dependencies of Ag sputtering yield and non-dissociative O₂ desorption yield at grazing incidence have been calculated. It was shown that these dependencies correlate the crystal orientation.     

Structural changes in anatase TiO2 thin films irradiated with high-energy heavy ions

In order to investigate possible structural changes due to high-density electronic excitation, anatase TiO₂ thin film specimens were irradiated with 230 MeV ¹³⁶Xe¹⁵⁺ ions and 200 MeV ¹⁹⁷Au¹³⁺ ions. X-ray diffraction (XRD) patterns were measured before and after irradiation. The intensity of the XRD peak assigned to the (0 0 4) planes of anatase TiO₂ decreases in an exponential manner as a function of ion-fluence. This result can be explained by the formation of the cylindrical damaged regions (i.e. ion tracks) with diameters of 9.6 and 16.3 nm for 230 MeV Xe and for 200 MeV Au ion irradiations, respectively. The difference in the track diameter between Xe ion irradiation and Au ion irradiation can be attributed to the difference in the electronic stopping power (and to the ion-velocity effect, if any). For 200 MeV Au ion irradiation, splitting of the (0 0 4) peak is observed. The original (0 0 4) TiO₂ peak remains in the same position, but the new peak shifts to higher angles as fluence increases.     

Production of cosmogenic nuclides in thick targets by alpha bombardment. Part I — short-lived radioisotopes

Production of short-lived cosmogenic nuclides in planetary surfaces and remote spacecraft detectors was simulated by bombarding “thick” C, Mg, Al, Si, SiO₂, Fe, Ni, and Ge targets with 60, 90 and 120 MeV alpha particles. Gold foils were used to monitor alpha particle fluence; product nuclides were measured by gamma ray spectroscopy. The results were used to calculate production yields for each alpha energy, as well as cross sections averaged over the energy ranges 60–90 and 90–120 MeV.     

Structure dependent electronic sputtering of a-C:H films by swift heavy ions

Electronic sputtering of a-C:H films by elastic recoil detection analysis technique is studied under 80 MeV Ni⁸⁺ and 150 MeV Ag¹³⁺ ion irradiations. These studies show that electronic sputtering yield of C and H from the films varies with film structure quite significantly. The structure of the films is analyzed from the characteristic graphitic (G) and disordered (D) modes of Raman vibration. Atomic force microscopy was performed on two films for grain size determination. The difference in electronic sputtering yields is discussed on the basis of structural influence of the films on swift heavy ion and solid interaction.     

Effect of forming gas anneals on the photoluminescence from nanocrystalline silicon formed by Si implantation into SiO2 matrix

The blue region of the room temperature photoluminescence spectrum from Si nanocrystallites formed in SiO₂ by Si⁺ ion implantation has been observed for the first time after annealing in a forming gas (10% H₂ + 90% N₂) ambient. Thermally grown SiO₂ on Si substrates were implanted with a dose of 2 × 10¹⁷ Si⁺ cm⁻² at energies of 200 keV and 400 keV. For reference purposes, quartz silica was implanted also with the same dose of 200 keV Si⁺ ions. The implanted samples were annealed in nitrogen and forming gas at 900°C for 3 to 180 min. Both the SiO₂ and quartz samples exhibited luminescence at about 380 nm which was weak, but detectable, before annealing. During extended anneals in forming gas, the intensity increased by a factor of about 2 above that recorded after a nitrogen anneal but the peak position was unchanged. The intensity was greater in samples annealed in forming gas which is due to the additional hydrogen. It would seem that this blue luminescence originates from new luminescent centres in the matrix caused by the Si⁺ ion implantation.     

Influence of electronic charge compensation on Rutherford backscattering spectra of biased insulators

On irradiating quartz targets with 2 MeV ⁴He⁺ ions the spectra show a drastic shift of the RBS edge towards higher energies. This shift depends strongly on the biasing voltage applied to the target holder. For positive biasing up to 200 V no significant shift of the edges compared to the theoretical RBS edges of SiO₂ is observed. On the other hand, negative biasing up to − 200 V shifts the edges by 120 keV. This effect can be explained by a negative (electronic) charge compensation of the positive charge on the irradiated insulator. This charge compensation is affected by the potential of the holder, the positive potential of the target and the potential of the space charge in front of the target. The experimental results are explained according to this model with realistic parameters, i.e. mean electron energy and electron density.     

Secondary neutral and ionized particle measurements under MeV-energy ion bombardment

We have measured both secondary neutral and ionized particles from an InSb target under 3.0 MeV Si ion bombardment. Measurements of both ions and neutrals have not been carried out so far in the MeV-energy range. The mass spectra and axial emission energy distributions of secondary particles were investigated. Secondary ions were measured with a linear- and a reflective-type time-of-flight technique, whereas secondary neutral particles were photo-ionized by a UV pulsed laser (ArF: 193 nm) and measured with a reflective-type time-of-flight technique. Different results were obtained for neutral particles in comparison with ionized particles. The mean energy of neutral Sb atoms was much lower than that of neutral In atoms, whereas the mean energies of secondary In and Sb ions were nearly equal.     

Structural stability of Cu nanocrystals in SiO2 exposed to high-energy ion irradiation

Cu nanocrystals (NCs) were synthesized in SiO₂ by ion implantation and thermal annealing. Annealing at two different temperatures of 950 °C and 650 °C yielded two different nanocrystal size distributions with an average diameter of 8.1 and 2.5 nm, respectively. Subsequently the NCs were exposed to 5.0 MeV Sn³⁺ ion irradiation simultaneously with a thin Cu film as a bulk reference. The short-range atomic structure and average NC diameter was measured by means of extended X-ray absorption fine structure (EXAFS) spectroscopy and small angle X-ray scattering (SAXS), respectively. Consistent with the high regeneration rate of bulk elemental metals, no irradiation induced defects were observed for the reference, whereas the small NCs (2.5 nm) were dissolved as Cu monomers in the matrix. The latter was attributed to irradiation-induced mixing of Cu, Si and O based on dynamic binary collision simulations. For the large NCs (8.1 nm) only minor structural changes were observed upon irradiation, consistent with a more bulk-like pre-irradiation structure.     

Development of enhanced depth-resolution technique for shallow dopant profiles

A rapid shrinkage in the minimum feature size of integrated circuits requires analysis of dopants in their shallow source–drain and their extensions with an enhanced depth resolution. Rutherford backscattering spectroscopy (RBS) combining a medium-energy He ion beam with a detector of improved energy resolution should meet the requirement of a depth resolution better than 5 nm at a depth of 10–20 nm in the next 10 years. A toroidal electrostatic analyzer of 4×10⁻³ energy resolution has been used to detect the scattered ions of a medium-energy He ion beam. Five keV As⁺ implanted Si or SiO₂ samples were measured. Depth profiling results using the above technique are compared with those of glancing-angle RBS by MeV energy He ions. Limitations in the energy resolution due to various energy-spread contributions have been clarified.     

Irradiation effects with 100 MeV Xe ions on optical properties of Al-doped ZnO films

Al-doped ZnO (AZO) films are known as n-type transparent semiconductors. We have investigated the effects of 100 MeV Xe ion irradiation on the optical and structural properties of AZO films, which were prepared on SiO₂ glass at 400 °C by using a RF-magnetron sputtering deposition method. We discuss relationships between these property modifications and the recent observations of the conductivity increase by ion irradiation. It is suggested that the band-gap modification has more close relation with the conductivity increase than the structural modification.     

Influence of the target thickness on the backward and forward electron emission characteristics induced by protons incident on thin carbon foils

The forward (γ_F) and backward (γ_B) electron emission yields have been measured for protons incident on thin carbon foils for incident energies between 2 and 7 MeV as a function of the target thickness. Comparisons with theoretical results obtained by Monte Carlo simulations are presented. In particular, the Meckbach factor R_γ = γ_F/γ_B is discussed.     

On the role of energy deposition in triggering SEGR in powerMOSFETs

Single event gate rupture (SEGR) was studied using three types of power MOSFET devices with ions having incident linear energy transfers (LETs) in silicon from 26 to 82 MeV·cm²/mg. Results are: (1) consistent with Wrobel's oxide breakdown for V_DS=0 volts (for both normal incidence and angle); and (2) when V_GS=0 volts, energy deposited near the Si/SiO₂ interface is more important than the energy deposited deeper in the epi     

Desorption of gold nanoclusters (2–150 nm) by 1 GeV Pb ions

Nanodispersed targets of gold (grains sized at 2–150 nm) were irradiated with 956 MeV ions of Pb⁵⁴⁺ ((dE/dx)_e in gold 87 keV/nm). Ejected gold was gathered on collectors. Desorbed nanoclusters of gold were detected by means of TEM while the total matter transfer was measured by neutron activation analysis. For all the targets a part of ejected gold presents nanoclusters in the same size range as that of the grains on the corresponding targets. Desorption of nanoclusters with the size up to 90 nm was observed for the first time for atomic primary ions in the electronic stopping regime. The yield of the desorbed nanoclusters decreases from 22 to 1.4 cluster/ion with increasing the mean grain size from 6 to 30 nm. The total matter transfer measured for the target with the grain size 6–10 nm has a great value – 5 × 10⁵ at./ion. Results are discussed.