Tracks of 30-MeV C60 clusters in yttrium iron garnet studied by scanning force microscopy

✍ Scribed by A.S. El-Said

• Publisher: Elsevier Science
• Year: 2009
• Tongue: English
• Weight: 321 KB
• Volume: 267
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 0168-583X
• DOI: 10.1016/j.nimb.2009.02.020

✦ Synopsis

Yttrium iron garnet (Y 3 Fe 5 O 12 or YIG), an amorphizable ferrimagnetic insulator, is probably the best studied material with respect to track formation and damage morphology. This paper presents first scanning force microscopy (SFM) of surface damage induced by energetic C 60 clusters. YIG single crystals were irradiated at normal incidence with 30-MeV C 60 cluster ions (kinetic energy $0.04 MeV/u) provided by the tandem accelerator of the Institute of Nuclear Physics in Orsay (IPNO). The SFM topographic images show nano-protrusions on the YIG surface; where each hillock is generated by one C 60 cluster. The role of stopping power and deposited energy density is discussed in terms of dimensional analysis of the nanostructures. Hillocks created by C 60 clusters are compared with those produced by monatomic ions.