High intensity pulsed ion beams in material processing: Equipment and applications

Abstract

The accelerators capable of producing short-duration high intensity pulsed ion beams (HIPIB) used so far in surface treatment experiments are outlined. The duration of the beams fall in the range from ns to μs and their current densities are in the range between 50–280 A/cm 2. In the remainder of the paper the experiments illustrating the modification of the surface properties of semiconductors, metals and ceramics are reviewed. They show that in semiconductors, HIPIB may be effective in annealing of ion implantation damage, in formation of p-n junctions in a single step doping process, in alloying the predeposited dopant, and in silicides formation. In metals, properly chosen HIPIB may induce the effects leading to an increase of their microhardness, abrasive wear resistance and corrosion resistance. Also mixing of various kind of coatings with metallic substrates is feasible. In ceramics, HIPIB can be used in polishing their surface by surface melt. It is also demonstrated that with HIPIB technique, the single step process of deposition of well adhesing metallic coatings on metallic and ceramic substrates can be accomplished.