Role of Carrier Concentration in Swift Heavy Ion Irradiation Induced Surface Modifications

TL;DR

This study investigates how carrier concentration influences surface modifications in SnO2 thin films caused by swift heavy ion irradiation, revealing that conductivity levels determine track formation and surface morphology changes.

Contribution

It demonstrates the dependence of ion-induced surface modifications on carrier concentration, highlighting the threshold energy loss for latent track formation in conducting versus insulating SnO2 films.

Findings

Latent tracks form only in annealed, insulating SnO2 films.

Surface morphology changes correlate with carrier concentration.

Threshold energy loss for track formation depends on free electron density.

Abstract

Highly conducting $SnO_{2}$ thin films were prepared by chemical spray pyrolysis technique. One set of as-deposited films were annealed in air for 2 h at 850$^{o}$C. These as-deposited and annealed films were irradiated using $Au^{9+}$ ions with energy of 120 MeV at different fluences ranging from $1\times10^{11}$ to $3\times10^{13}$ $ions/cm^{2}$. Electrical measurement shows that as-deposited $SnO_{2}$ films are in conducting state with n = $3.164 \times 10^{20}$ $cm^{-3}$ and annealed $SnO_{2}$ films are in insulating state. The amorphized latent tracks are created only above a certain threshold value of $S_{e}$, which directly depends on the free electron concentration (n). The electronic energy loss ($S_{e}$) of 120 MeV $Au^{9+}$ ions in $SnO_{2}$ is greater than the threshold energy loss ($S_{eth}$) required for the latent track formation in annealed $SnO_{2}$ thin film, but is less than $S_{eth}$ required for as-deposited $SnO_{2}$ film. Therefore, the latent tracks are formed in the annealed $SnO_{2}$ film and not in the as-deposited $SnO_{2}$ film. Thermal spike model is used for the calculation of threshold energy loss and radius of melted zone. The possible mechanism of the structural changes and surface microstructure evolutions is briefly discussed in the light of ion's energy relaxation processes and target's conductivity. The atomic force microscopy (AFM) study of films shows that the morphologies of irradiated films are linked with carrier concentration of target materials.