Surface ripples induced by gas cluster ion beam on copper surface at elevated temperatures

Abstract

The temperature dependence of the ripples formation on a copper surface under off-normal gas cluster ion beam irradiation was investigated. At room temperature, well developed asymmetric ripples perpendicular to the beam were obtained with “droplets” of copper at the crests. At elevated temperatures, surface smoothing was found instead of rippling. On some grains the ripples perpendicular to the ion beam still remained. To explain this fact, electron backscattered diffraction analysis of the samples surfaces was performed. It showed that the ripple formation at elevated temperatures is governed both by the ion beam direction and by the crystalline orientation of a grain with respect to the beam.