Neutralization rate for slow Ar ions in front of KCl(0 0 1)

Charge state distributions of reflected ions are measured when 5 keV Ar^q+(q = 0−2) ions are incident on a clean KCl(0 0 1) surface at grazing angle, θ_i. Although the charge state distribution does not depend on the incident charge state at larger θ_i, significant dependence of the charge state distribution on incident charge state is observed at smaller θ_i. The ionization of Ar⁰ is completely suppressed at θ_i < 20 mrad, while large neutralization probability is observed for Ar⁺ incidence. These features allow us to derive the position-dependent neutralization rate of Ar⁺ in front of KCl(0 0 1). The obtained neutralization rate decreases exponentially with distance from the surface as it is usually assumed.     

Effects of ion irradiation on cobalt nanocomposite

The effects of ion irradiation of 3-dimensional arrays of Co nanoparticles were investigated. Arrays were obtained by electron beam deposition of 15 Co/SiO₂ bilayers 0.5 and 20 nm thick, respectively. The Co layers consist of Co nanoparticles 3.2 nm in diameter with a standard deviation of 16%. Irradiation was carried out using combinations of 150 kV Ar²⁺ and 90 kV Ar⁺ ion bombardments with a Ar⁺:Ar²⁺ fluence ratio of 1:4. The effects of ion irradiation were followed by Rutherford backscattering, measurements of hysteresis loops at 5 K and of temperature-dependent field-cooled (FC) and zero-field-cooled (ZFC) measurements of the magnetic susceptibility. A decrease of the peak temperature in the ZFC curve for displacements per atom (DPA) up to 1.1 was observed. Irradiation also induces progressively lower coercivity values. The Co particles showed a remarkable high resistance to ion irradiation, surviving damage up to 33 DPA.     

Neutralization of keV Ne and Ar ions during grazing scattering from an Al(1 1 1) surface

Charge fractions after scattering of Ne⁺ ions, Ne⁰ atoms and Ar⁺ ions with keV energies under a grazing angle of incidence from an atomically clean and flat Al(1 1 1) surface are studied. For incoming Ne⁺ ions we observe defined ion fractions in the scattered beams, whereas for incident Ne⁰ atoms ion fractions are more than one order of magnitude smaller. This experimental result provides clear evidence for a survival of Ne⁺ ions over the whole scattering event. From the dependence of ion fractions on the perpendicular energy component we derive neutralization rates as function of distance from the surface. These rates compare well with recent theoretical calculations for the system He⁺–Al(1 1 1). For incident Ar⁺ ions no survival of ions is found and upper limits for the survival probability and lower limits for the neutralization rate are determined.     

Argon irradiation damage at a Cu/Al2O3 interface for different alumina structures

The evolution of damages at a Cu/Al₂O₃ device interface after Ar⁺ irradiation, depending on alumina structure, and the effect of surface roughness on sputtering have been studied. A polycrystalline Cu/Al₂O₃ bilayer and polycrystalline Cu on amorphous alumina were irradiated with 400 keV Ar⁺ ion beam at doses ranging from 5 × 10¹⁶ to 10¹⁷ Ar⁺/cm² at room temperature. The copper layer thicknesses were between 100 and 200 nm. RBS analysis was used to characterize the interface modification and to deduce the sputtering yield of copper. The SEM technique was used to control the surface topography. A RBS computer simulation program was used to reproduce experimental spectra and to follow the concentration profile evolutions of different elements before and after ion irradiation. A modified TRIM calculation program which takes into account the sputtering yield evolution as well as the concentration variation versus dose gives a satisfactory reproduction of the experimental argon distribution. The surface roughness effect on sputtering and the alumina structure influence at the interface on mixing mechanisms are discussed.     

Static and dynamic deformations stimulated by ion implantation

The laser interferometric technique has been applied for the investigation of the quasi-static and dynamic components of the elastic deformation of crystalline silicon wafers during implantation of Ar⁺ and He⁺ ions. The absolute values of the integral stress and the amplitude of deformation vibrations are measured as a functions of implanted ions dose, energy and current density and compared with the dose dependencies of the surface acoustic waves (SAW) velocity in the implanted layer. The correlation between integral stress, amplitude of vibrations and SAW velocity variations is shown.     

Ion beam enhanced etching of LiNbO3

Single crystals of z- and x-cut LiNbO₃ were irradiated at room temperature and 15 K using He⁺- and Ar⁺-ions with energies of 40 and 350 keV and ion fluences between 5 × 10¹² and 5 × 10¹⁶ cm⁻². The damage formation investigated with Rutherford backscattering spectrometry (RBS) channeling analysis depends on the irradiation temperature as well as the ion species. For instance, He⁺-irradiation of z-cut material at 300 K provokes complete amorphization at 2.0 dpa (displacements per target atom). In contrast, 0.4 dpa is sufficient to amorphize the LiNbO₃ in the case of Ar⁺-irradiation. Irradiation at 15 K reduces the number of displacements per atom necessary for amorphization. To study the etching behavior, 400 nm thick amorphous layers were generated via multiple irradiation with He⁺- and Ar⁺-ions of different energies and fluences. Etching was performed in a 3.6% hydrofluoric (HF) solution at 40 °C. Although the etching rate of the perfect crystal is negligible, that of the amorphized regions amounts to 80 nm min⁻¹. The influence of the ion species, the fluence, the irradiation temperature and subsequent thermal treatment on damage and etching of LiNbO₃ are discussed.     

Ion beam induced nucleation in amorphous GaAs layers during MeV implantation

To investigate the nonlinear dose dependence of the thickness of the recrystallized layer during ion beam induced epitaxial recrystallization at amorphous/crystalline interfaces GaAs samples were irradiated with 1.0 MeV Ar⁺, 1.6 MeV Ar⁺ or 2.5 MeV Kr⁺ ions using a dose rate of 1.4 × 10¹² cm⁻² s⁻¹ at temperatures between 50°C and 180°C. It has been found that the thickness of the recrystallized layer reaches a maximum value at T_max = 90°C and 135°C for the Ar⁺ and Kr⁺ implantations, respectively. This means that the crystallization rate deviates from an Arrhenius dependence due to ion beam induced nucleation and growth within the remaining amorphous layer. The size of the crystallites depends on the implantation dose. This nucleation and growth of the crystallites disturbes and at least blocks the interface movement because the remaining surface layer becomes polycrystalline. Choosing temperatures sufficiently below T_max the thickness of the recrystallized layer increases linearly with the implantation dose indicating that the irradiation temperature is too low for ion induced nucleation.     

Surface morphology of the Ar ion-irradiated Ag/Si(1 1 1) system

In the present study, a 500 Å thin Ag film was deposited by thermal evaporation on 5% HF etched Si(1 1 1) substrate at a chamber pressure of 8×10⁻⁶ mbar. The films were irradiated with 100 keV Ar⁺ ions at room temperature (RT) and at elevated temperatures to a fluence of 1×10¹⁶ cm⁻² at a flux of 5.55×10¹² ions/cm²/s. Surface morphology of the Ar ion-irradiated Ag/Si(1 1 1) system was investigated using scanning electron microscopy (SEM). A percolation network pattern was observed when the film was irradiated at 200°C and 400°C. The fractal dimension of the percolated pattern was higher in the sample irradiated at 400°C compared to the one irradiated at 200°C. The percolation network is still observed in the film thermally annealed at 600°C with and without prior ion irradiation. The fractal dimension of the percolated pattern in the sample annealed at 600°C was lower than in the sample post-annealed (irradiated and then annealed) at 600°C. All these observations are explained in terms of self-diffusion of Ag atoms on the Si(1 1 1) substrate, inter-diffusion of Ag and Si and phase formations in Ag and Si due to Ar ion irradiation.     

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.     

Depth-profiling of beryllium on graphite with ion beams

The surface layer of beryllium-coated graphite was analysed by backscattering and nuclear reaction methods using a 2.5 MeV accelerator. For the Be analysis the nuclear reactions ⁹Be(p, d)⁸Be, ⁹Be(p, )⁶Li, ⁹Be(d, p)¹⁰Be, ⁹Be(d, t)⁸Be, ⁹Be(d, )⁷Li and ⁹Be(³He, p)¹¹B are compared with backscattering of ⁴He⁺ and protons. For the analysis of carbon, which provides complementary information to the depth profiling of Be, and for the analysis of oxygen, which is the third element of importance in the system, elastic backscattering of ⁴He⁺ and protons is applied. It turns out that the backscattering analysis with protons of 1.3 MeV presents the best compromise for a quick and straightforward measurement of all three elements. The other methods have their merits for a more detailed analysis.     

Temperature dependence of the chemical sputtering of amorphous hydrogenated carbon films by hydrogen

The temperature dependence of chemical erosion and chemical sputtering of amorphous hydrogenated carbon films due to exposure to hydrogen atoms (H⁰) alone and combined exposure to argon ions and H⁰ was measured in the temperature range from 110 to 950 K. The chemical erosion yield for H⁰ alone is below the detection limit for temperatures below about 340 K. It increases strongly with increasing temperature, goes through a maximum around 650–700 K and decreases again for higher temperatures. Combined exposure to Ar⁺ and H⁰ results in substantial chemical sputtering yields in the temperature range below 340 K. In this range the yield does not depend on temperature, but it increases with energy from about 1 (eroded carbon atoms per impinging Ar⁺ ion) to about 4 if the ion energy is increased from 50 to 800 eV. For temperatures above 340 K the measured erosion rates show the same temperature dependence as for the H⁰-only case, but they are higher than for H⁰-only. The difference between the Ar⁺ and H⁰ and the H⁰-only cases increases monotonically with increasing ion energy.     

High ion-beam induced electron yields from polycrystalline diamond

Extraordinarily high ion-beam induced electron yields are seen from polycrystalline diamond surfaces for high energy H⁺, He⁺ and Ar⁺ ions. This is attributed to the negative electron affinity of the diamond surface. However, the yield decays rapidly with dose, limiting the potential applications. The mechanism for decay is suggested to be electron-stimulated desorption of surface hydrogen, which removes the negative electron affinity responsible for high yields.     

Broadening effects in Auger neutralization of 130–430 eV Ar ions at Al surfaces

We present a model for electron emission from Al surfaces by Auger neutralization of 130–430 eV Ar⁺ ions, that includes the singular response of the metal conduction band to the abrupt change of the surface potential caused by electron capture by the incident ion. This effect, previously identified in X-ray studies, produces a broadening that plays a significant role in reproducing the higher energy part of the experimental electron kinetic energy distributions.     

Ion implantation doping and electrical conductivity enhancement of C60 films

Pristine C₆₀ films sublimed onto sheet mica were implanted with 20 keV K⁺ ions and I⁺ ions at doses of 1.0 × 10¹⁶/cm², 3.0 × 10¹⁶/cm² and 5.0 × 10¹⁶/cm², and with 20 keV Ar⁺ ions at a dose of 5.0 × 10¹⁶/cm². The distributions of dopants were studied using Rutherford backscattering spectrometry (RBS). The temperature dependence of sheet resistivity of the films was investigated applying a four-probe system. It was proposed that the conductivity enhancement of K⁺ implanted C₆₀ films was due to the implanted ions in the films, while for I⁺ implanted C₆₀ films, both implanted I⁺ ions and irradiation effects of the ions contributed to the enhancement of conductivity.     

Ion beam mixing of titanium films on stainless steel

The ion mixing of Ti-steel bilayers with N⁺, Ar⁺, Ti⁺, Kr⁺ and Xe⁺ ions was investigated by means of Rutherford backscattering spectroscopy (RBS). The mixing rates exhibit a linear scaling with the deposited damage energy f_D. No correlation between the properties of the mixing ion and the mixing efficiency was found. The results are compared with the predictions of ballistic and thermal-spike models.     

Development of a helicon-wave excited plasma facility with high magnetic field for plasma-wall interactions studies

The high magnetic field helicon experiment system is a helicon wave plasma(HWP)source device in a high axial magnetic field(B_0)developed for plasma–wall interactions studies for fusion reactors.This HWP was realized at low pressure(5?×?10~(-3)?-?10 Pa)and a RF(radio frequency,13.56 MHz)power(maximum power of 2 k W)using an internal right helical antenna(5 cm in diameter by 18 cm long)with a maximum B_0of 6300 G.Ar HWP with electron density~10~(18)–10~(20)m~(-3)and electron temperature~4–7 e V was produced at high B_0 of 5100 G,with an RF power of 1500 W.Maximum Ar~+ion flux of 7.8?×?10~(23)m~(-2)s~(-1)with a bright blue core plasma was obtained at a high B_0 of 2700 G and an RF power of 1500 W without bias.Plasma energy and mass spectrometer studies indicate that Ar~+ion-beams of 40.1 eV are formed,which are supersonic(~3.1c_s).The effect of Ar HWP discharge cleaning on the wall conditioning are investigated by using the mass spectrometry.And the consequent plasma parameters will result in favorable wall conditioning with a removal rate of 1.1?×?10~(24)N_2/m~2 h.     

Desorption of silver atoms from benzene-covered Ag(1 1 1) by energetic Ar bombardment

Experiments have been conducted to gain insight into the processes of desorption of neutral species from surfaces covered with organic molecules due to bombardment with keV particles. The system is comprised of benzene molecules adsorbed onto Ag(1 1 1) and bombarded with 8 keV Ar⁺ ions. Molecular dynamics (MD) simulations of the same system have been performed. Results show that the presence of the benzene alters the yield, the kinetic energy distributions, and the angular distributions of the silver atoms. These changes of the desorption characteristics are the result of collisions between the Ag atoms and the benzene molecules adsorbed to the surface. As more benzene is adsorbed to the surface, the changes to the Ag atom desorption characteristics become more pronounced. The simulations reproduce the modifications to the Ag atom energy and angle distributions.     

Resonant ion stimulated desorption of O from the TiO2(1 1 0) surface: Effects of oxygenation and ion bombardment

The O⁺ desorption from reduced, oxygenated, and ion-bombarded TiO₂(1 1 0) surfaces has been investigated during He⁺ irradiation. The O⁺ desorption is initiated by creation of an antibonding O 2s core hole state via quasi-resonant charge exchange with the He⁺ 1s state, followed by the intra-atomic Auger decay of the O 2s hole. Upon oxygenation of the reduced TiO₂(1 1 0) surface, the O⁺ yield increases by one order of magnitude. The O₂ molecule is dissociated at the vacancy site of bridging oxygen and the oxygen atoms either fill a vacancy site or chemisorb at a fivefold-coordinated Ti⁴⁺ site as an adatom. The latter is detected with much higher efficiency than the former. The O⁺ yield is increased during He⁺ bombardment of the reduced TiO₂(1 1 0) surface due to formation of lower coordinated oxygen atoms. The oxygen species thus formed by ion bombardment or oxygenation are unstable on the surface and tend to diffuse into bulk vacancy sites or higher coordination surface sites even at room temperature.     

Inelastic processes in Ne collisions with a Mg surface; charge fractions and surface roughness

Results of a study of inelastic scattering in Ne⁺ collisions with a polycrystalline Mg target, performed by measurements of charge fractions, are reported. In agreement with previous studies, ion production is found to be due to binary collisions with surface atoms and the charge fractions can be well described by a simple exponential dependence on the perpendicular velocity in the outgoing trajectory. This is also shown to be the case for Ar⁺ collisions. Charge fractions and angular distributions of scattered particles are strongly affected by surface roughness effects.     

A TEM study of D -implanted Cu following Ar-ion milling: Microstructure and epitaxial Cu2O formation

In examining the microstructure of TEM specimens prepared from D⁺-implanted Cu for the presence of bubbles it was found that cuprous oxide (Cu₂O) layers had formed over large areas of the specimen surfaces. The Cu was irradiated at normal incidence with 200 keV D⁺ ions at a temperature of 120 K to a dose of ˜2 × 10²¹ D⁺/m². Ar⁺ ion milling at 330 K was used to erode irradiated surfaces to various depths prior to chemical back-thinning in a jet electropolishing bath. There was no evidence for the formation in the Cu of bubbles of either deuterium or argon, but dislocations at high density and planar defects were evident. Lattice fringes from {110}, {111} and {200} planes in Cu₂O and moiré patterns formed by double diffraction in the Cu and overlaid Cu₂O film were obvious features in bright-field micrographs. The moiré patterns include examples of magnified images of lattice defects.