Low energy cathodoluminescence analysis of damage build-up in ion irradiated spinel mono- and polycrystals

Abstract

Abstract In contrast to single crystalline materials a quantitative determination of defect formation in polycrystals is challenging. Here we use low-energy (3 keV) cathodoluminescence (CL) for structural characterization of single and polycrystalline magnesium aluminate spinel (MgAl2O4) exposed to irradiation with 300 keV Ar+ ions at room temperature in a wide fluence range of 1 × 1012–2 × 1016 cm−2. The results for single crystalline materials are also compared with conventional Rutherford Backscattering and Channeling spectrometry (RBS/C). It is demonstrated that damage formation in both single and polycrystalline spinels exhibits a multi-step character where polycrystalline material is more susceptible to ion irradiation. The results also imply that the low-energy CL is more sensitive to low damage levels as compared to RBS/C and it can be efficiently used as a complementary tool showing new perspectives in the damage accumulation studies in single- and polycrystalline materials.