Heavy-ion induced modification of lithium fluoride observed by scanning force microscopy

To study ion-induced damages in single crystals of lithium fluoride with scanning force microscopy (SFM), samples were irradiated with several heavy-ion species of a kinetic energy of 11.4 MeV per nucleon at the linear accelerator UNILAC of GSI. As concluded from a previous analysis of ion tracks in LiF by optical absorption spectroscopy and small-angle X-ray scattering, single point defects occur in a track halo with a radius of about 15-30 nm, whereas defect aggregates are formed in a track core region possessing a radius of only about 1-2 nm. These aggregates can be attacked by chemical etching if the energy loss along the ion trajectory surpasses a critical value of about 1 keV/Aa. SFM images of etched as well as unetched sample surfaces revealed new damage characteristics: Etched ion track profiles directed parallel to the ion trajectories exhibit a sequence of single etch pits with an average distance of about 140 nm. After exposure to heavy-ion irradiation at normal incidence, the unetched LiF surface is covered with round hillocks with a mean diameter of 55(8) nm and heights in the order of 3 nm. (orig.)