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Ion Beam Analysis, Modification, and Irradiation of Materials

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A special issue of Materials (ISSN 1996-1944).

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (15 August 2017) | Viewed by 38251

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Prof. Dr. Wei-Kan Chu

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Guest Editor

Department of Physics, University of Houston, Houston, TX, USA
Interests: energy loss; and straggling; scattering crossections

Prof. Dr. Anders Hallén

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Guest Editor

School of Information and Communication Technology, KTH, SE 164 60 Kista, Sweden
Interests: wide bandgap semiconductors; ion implantation; point defects; ion beam analysis; power devices; dielectrics; semiconductor processing
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Assoc. Prof. Dr. Lin Shao

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Guest Editor

Nuclear Engineering, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX, USA
Interests: ion beam analysis, radiation effects in nuclear and electronic materials

Dr. Yongqiang Wang

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Guest Editor

Materials Science & Technology Division, Los Alamos National Laboratory, Los Alamos, NM 87544, USA
Interests: Ion enhanced synthesis; ion implantation; radiation damage; irradiated materials; thin films; surface characterization; complex oxides; nuclear materials
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Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

This Special Issue aims to report original and significant discoveries of ion beam based materials science and technology advancements. The past several decades have witnessed a continuous interest in using ion beams for a wide range of materials’ research including dopant implantation in semiconductor device fabrication, nondestructive characterization in thin film analysis, and simulations of neutron damage in nuclear materials. With technology’s evolution towards new devices and new materials, other challenges arise in both fundamental studies and technology development. This Special Issue is designed for rapid knowledge dissemination at the frontier of materials research with energetic ion beams.

Topics of interest include fundamentals studies and technological improvements in ion beam analysis, modification, and irradiation of materials. Both experimental studies and modeling simulations are encouraged. Various ion-target systems, such as projectiles of single ions, focused ions, cluster ions, and targets of crystals, amorphous ceramics/metals, nanomaterials, and composite materials are of interest.

In ion beam analysis (IBA), topics include technology advancements on existing IBA techniques towards high accuracy and high depth resolution, developments of new IBA techniques, or applying IBA to advanced materials.

In ion modification, topics include very low dose effects, to tailor point defects, up to high fluence ion beam synthesis of new compounds. Application areas can be found in ion beam processing of highly scaled electronics, solar cells, advanced detectors and sensors, ion beam treatments of novel materials for unique, or enhanced functionalities and ion beam induced synthesis of nanostructures for emerging applications.

In ion beam irradiation, topics include using accelerators to introduce a high level of damage in ceramics, metals, and advanced alloys to study radiation induced or accelerated swelling, hardening, embrittlement, creep, corrosion, and cracking. Technological improvements and new best practice towards standardization of the ion irradiation procedure in emulating reactor neutron damage are also encouraged.

All submitted manuscripts will be peer reviewed.

Prof. Dr. Wei-Kan Chu
Prof. Dr. Anders Hallén
Assoc. Dr. Lin Shao
Dr. Yongqiang Wang
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Materials is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

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Published Papers (7 papers)

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Research

16794 KiB

Open AccessArticle

In Situ TEM Multi-Beam Ion Irradiation as a Technique for Elucidating Synergistic Radiation Effects

by Caitlin Anne Taylor, Daniel Charles Bufford, Brittany Rana Muntifering, David Senor, Mackenzie Steckbeck, Justin Davis, Barney Doyle, Daniel Buller and Khalid Mikhiel Hattar

Materials 2017, 10(10), 1148; https://doi.org/10.3390/ma10101148 - 29 Sep 2017

Cited by 11 | Viewed by 5770

Abstract

Materials designed for nuclear reactors undergo microstructural changes resulting from a combination of several environmental factors, including neutron irradiation damage, gas accumulation and elevated temperatures. Typical ion beam irradiation experiments designed for simulating a neutron irradiation environment involve irradiating the sample with a single ion beam and subsequent characterization of the resulting microstructure, often by transmission electron microscopy (TEM). This method does not allow for examination of microstructural effects due to simultaneous gas accumulation and displacement cascade damage, which occurs in a reactor. Sandia’s in situ ion irradiation TEM (I³TEM) offers the unique ability to observe microstructural changes due to irradiation damage caused by concurrent multi-beam ion irradiation in real time. This allows for time-dependent microstructure analysis. A plethora of additional in situ stages can be coupled with these experiments, e.g., for more accurately simulating defect kinetics at elevated reactor temperatures. This work outlines experiments showing synergistic effects in Au using in situ ion irradiation with various combinations of helium, deuterium and Au ions, as well as some initial work on materials utilized in tritium-producing burnable absorber rods (TPBARs): zirconium alloys and LiAlO₂. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Ion Beam Analysis, Modification, and Irradiation of Materials)

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6971 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Self-Assembled Gold Nano-Ripple Formation by Gas Cluster Ion Beam Bombardment

by Buddhi P. Tilakaratne, Quark Y. Chen and Wei-Kan Chu

Materials 2017, 10(9), 1056; https://doi.org/10.3390/ma10091056 - 8 Sep 2017

Cited by 21 | Viewed by 5205

Abstract

In this study, we used a 30 keV argon cluster ion beam bombardment to investigate the dynamic processes during nano-ripple formation on gold surfaces. Atomic force microscope analysis shows that the gold surface has maximum roughness at an incident angle of 60° from the surface normal; moreover, at this angle, and for an applied fluence of 3 × 10¹⁶ clusters/cm², the aspect ratio of the nano-ripple pattern is in the range of ~50%. Rutherford backscattering spectrometry analysis reveals a formation of a surface gradient due to prolonged gas cluster ion bombardment, although the surface roughness remains consistent throughout the bombarded surface area. As a result, significant mass redistribution is triggered by gas cluster ion beam bombardment at room temperature. Where mass redistribution is responsible for nano-ripple formation, the surface erosion process refines the formed nano-ripple structures. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Ion Beam Analysis, Modification, and Irradiation of Materials)

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5800 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Monitoring Ion Track Formation Using In Situ RBS/c, ToF-ERDA, and HR-PIXE

by Marko Karlušić, Stjepko Fazinić, Zdravko Siketić, Tonči Tadić, Donny Domagoj Cosic, Iva Božičević-Mihalić, Ivana Zamboni, Milko Jakšić and Marika Schleberger

Materials 2017, 10(9), 1041; https://doi.org/10.3390/ma10091041 - 6 Sep 2017

Cited by 9 | Viewed by 4754

Abstract

The aim of this work is to investigate the feasibility of ion beam analysis techniques for monitoring swift heavy ion track formation. First, the use of the in situ Rutherford backscattering spectrometry in channeling mode to observe damage build-up in quartz SiO₂ after MeV heavy ion irradiation is demonstrated. Second, new results of the in situ grazing incidence time-of-flight elastic recoil detection analysis used for monitoring the surface elemental composition during ion tracks formation in various materials are presented. Ion tracks were found on SrTiO₃, quartz SiO₂, a-SiO₂, and muscovite mica surfaces by atomic force microscopy, but in contrast to our previous studies on GaN and TiO₂, surface stoichiometry remained unchanged. Third, the usability of high resolution particle induced X-ray spectroscopy for observation of electronic dynamics during early stages of ion track formation is shown. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Ion Beam Analysis, Modification, and Irradiation of Materials)

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3685 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Ion Beam Modification of Carbon Nanotube Yarn in Air and Vacuum

by Jonathan G. Gigax, Philip D. Bradford and Lin Shao

Materials 2017, 10(8), 860; https://doi.org/10.3390/ma10080860 - 27 Jul 2017

Cited by 8 | Viewed by 4027

Abstract

We studied the effects ion beam irradiation on carbon nanotube (CNT) yarns. CNT yarn was fabricated by drawing and spinning CNT sheets from a vertically aligned CNT forest. The yarn was irradiated by 2.5 MeV protons in either vacuum or air. Irradiation in air was achieved by directing the proton beam through a 0.025 mm thick Ti window. Irradiation in vacuum occurred at a pressure of <10⁻⁶ torr at room temperature and at an elevated temperature of 600 °C. Tensile testing revealed that CNT yarn irradiated in air increased in tensile strength with increasing proton fluence. For yarn irradiated in vacuum, however, the strength decreased with increasing fluence. We believe that irradiation-induced excitation and trapping/bonding of gas atoms between tubes may play a role for the mechanical property changes. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Ion Beam Analysis, Modification, and Irradiation of Materials)

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1209 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Ion-Beam-Induced Atomic Mixing in Ge, Si, and SiGe, Studied by Means of Isotope Multilayer Structures

by Manuel Radek, Bartosz Liedke, Bernd Schmidt, Matthias Voelskow, Lothar Bischoff, John Lundsgaard Hansen, Arne Nylandsted Larsen, Dominique Bougeard, Roman Böttger, Slawomir Prucnal, Matthias Posselt and Hartmut Bracht

Materials 2017, 10(7), 813; https://doi.org/10.3390/ma10070813 - 17 Jul 2017

Cited by 8 | Viewed by 5160

Abstract

Crystalline and preamorphized isotope multilayers are utilized to investigate the dependence of ion beam mixing in silicon (Si), germanium (Ge), and silicon germanium (SiGe) on the atomic structure of the sample, temperature, ion flux, and electrical doping by the implanted ions. The magnitude of mixing is determined by secondary ion mass spectrometry. Rutherford backscattering spectrometry in channeling geometry, Raman spectroscopy, and transmission electron microscopy provide information about the structural state after ion irradiation. Different temperature regimes with characteristic mixing properties are identified. A disparity in atomic mixing of Si and Ge becomes evident while SiGe shows an intermediate behavior. Overall, atomic mixing increases with temperature, and it is stronger in the amorphous than in the crystalline state. Ion-beam-induced mixing in Ge shows no dependence on doping by the implanted ions. In contrast, a doping effect is found in Si at higher temperature. Molecular dynamics simulations clearly show that ion beam mixing in Ge is mainly determined by the thermal spike mechanism. In the case of Si thermal spike, mixing prevails at low temperature whereas ion beam-induced enhanced self-diffusion dominates the atomic mixing at high temperature. The latter process is attributed to highly mobile Si di-interstitials formed under irradiation and during damage annealing. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Ion Beam Analysis, Modification, and Irradiation of Materials)

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6593 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Ion Beam Assisted Deposition of Thin Epitaxial GaN Films

by Bernd Rauschenbach, Andriy Lotnyk, Lena Neumann, David Poppitz and Jürgen W. Gerlach

Materials 2017, 10(7), 690; https://doi.org/10.3390/ma10070690 - 23 Jun 2017

Cited by 9 | Viewed by 6454

Abstract

The assistance of thin film deposition with low-energy ion bombardment influences their final properties significantly. Especially, the application of so-called hyperthermal ions (energy <100 eV) is capable to modify the characteristics of the growing film without generating a large number of irradiation induced defects. The nitrogen ion beam assisted molecular beam epitaxy (ion energy <25 eV) is used to deposit GaN thin films on (0001)-oriented 6H-SiC substrates at 700 °C. The films are studied in situ by reflection high energy electron diffraction, ex situ by X-ray diffraction, scanning tunnelling microscopy, and high-resolution transmission electron microscopy. It is demonstrated that the film growth mode can be controlled by varying the ion to atom ratio, where 2D films are characterized by a smooth topography, a high crystalline quality, low biaxial stress, and low defect density. Typical structural defects in the GaN thin films were identified as basal plane stacking faults, low-angle grain boundaries forming between w-GaN and z-GaN and twin boundaries. The misfit strain between the GaN thin films and substrates is relieved by the generation of edge dislocations in the first and second monolayers of GaN thin films and of misfit interfacial dislocations. It can be demonstrated that the low-energy nitrogen ion assisted molecular beam epitaxy is a technique to produce thin GaN films of high crystalline quality. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Ion Beam Analysis, Modification, and Irradiation of Materials)

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2416 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Evolution of Helium Bubbles and Discs in Irradiated 6H-SiC during Post-Implantation Annealing

by Qiang Shen, Wei Zhou, Guang Ran, Ruixiang Li, Qijie Feng and Ning Li

Materials 2017, 10(2), 101; https://doi.org/10.3390/ma10020101 - 24 Jan 2017

Cited by 24 | Viewed by 5235

Abstract

The single crystal 6H-SiC with [0001] crystal direction irradiated by 400 keV He⁺ ions with 1 × 10¹⁷ ions/cm² fluence at 400 °C were annealed at 600, 900, 1200 and 1400 °C for different durations. The evolution of helium bubbles and discs was investigated by transmission electron microscopy. An irradiated layer distributed with fine helium bubbles was formed with a width of ~170 nm after helium ion irradiation. The size of gas bubbles increased with increasing annealing time and temperature and finally reached stable values at a given annealing temperature. According to the relationship between the bubble radii and annealing time, an empirical formula for calculating the bubble radii at the annealing temperature ranged from 600 to 1400 °C was given by fitting the experiment data. Planar bubble clusters (discs) were found to form on (0001) crystal plane at both sides of the bubble layer when the annealing temperature was at the range of 800–1200 °C. The mechanism of bubble growth during post-implantation annealing and the formation of bubble discs were also analyzed and discussed. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Ion Beam Analysis, Modification, and Irradiation of Materials)

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