A study on the consequence of swift heavy ion irradiation of Zn-silica nanocomposite thin films: electronic sputtering.
Zn-silica nanocomposite thin films with varying Zn metal content, deposited by atom beam sputtering technique were subjected to 100 MeV Ag ion irradiation. Rutherford backscattering spectrometry reveals the loss of Zn with irradiation, which is observed to be greater from thin films with lower Zn content. The sputtered species collected on carbon-coated transmission electron microscopy (TEM) grids consist of Zn nanoparticles of sizes comparable to those present in the nanocomposite thin film. The process of size-dependent electronic sputtering of Zn is explained on the basis of an inelastic thermal spike model. The possibility of direct cluster emission is explained by pressure spike built inside the track, initiated by a temperature spike.
Inter-University Accelerator Centre, Aruna Asaf Ali Marg, New Delhi 110067, India.
Compesh
C
Pannu
Inter-University Accelerator Centre, Aruna Asaf Ali Marg, New Delhi 110067, India.
Udai B
UB
Singh
Inter-University Accelerator Centre, Aruna Asaf Ali Marg, New Delhi 110067, India.
Dinesh C
DC
Agarwal
Inter-University Accelerator Centre, Aruna Asaf Ali Marg, New Delhi 110067, India.
Saif A
SA
Khan
Inter-University Accelerator Centre, Aruna Asaf Ali Marg, New Delhi 110067, India.
Sunil
S
Ojha
Institute Instrumentation Centre, Indian Institute of Technology, Roorkee 247667, India.
Ramesh
R
Chandra
National Institute for Materials Science (NIMS), Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305-0003, Japan.
Hiro
H
Amekura
Inter-University Accelerator Centre, Aruna Asaf Ali Marg, New Delhi 110067, India.
Debdulal
D
Kabiraj
Inter-University Accelerator Centre, Aruna Asaf Ali Marg, New Delhi 110067, India.
Devesh K
DK
Avasthi
Rutherford backscattering spectrometry; ion irradiation; nanocomposites; pressure spike; transmission electron microscopy