Wavelength tunability of ion-bombardment-induced ripples on sapphire

Hua Zhou, Yiping Wang, Lan Zhou, Randall L. Headrick, Ahmet S. Özcan, Yiyi Wang, Gözde Özaydin, Karl F. Ludwig, Jr., and D. Peter Siddons
Phys. Rev. B 75, 155416 – Published 17 April 2007

Abstract

A study of ripple formation on sapphire surfaces by 3002000eV Ar+ ion bombardment is presented. Surface characterization by in-situ synchrotron grazing incidence small angle x-ray scattering and ex-situ atomic force microscopy is performed in order to study the wavelength of ripples formed on sapphire (0001) surfaces. We find that the wavelength can be varied over a remarkably wide range—nearly two orders of magnitude—by changing the ion incidence angle. Within the linear theory regime, the ion induced viscous flow smoothing mechanism explains the general trends of the ripple wavelength at low temperature and incidence angles larger than 30°. In this model, relaxation is confined to a few nm thick damaged surface layer. The behavior at high temperature suggests relaxation by surface diffusion. However, strong smoothing is inferred from the observed ripple wavelength near normal incidence, which is not consistent with either surface diffusion or viscous flow relaxation.

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  • Received 28 July 2006

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevB.75.155416

©2007 American Physical Society

Authors & Affiliations

Hua Zhou, Yiping Wang, Lan Zhou, and Randall L. Headrick*

  • Department of Physics, University of Vermont, Burlington, Vermont 05405, USA

Ahmet S. Özcan, Yiyi Wang, Gözde Özaydin, and Karl F. Ludwig, Jr.

  • Department of Physics, Boston University, Massachusetts 02215, USA

D. Peter Siddons

  • National Synchrotron Light Source, Brookhaven National Laboratory, Upton, New York 11973, USA

  • *Electronic address: rheadrick@uvm.edu

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Issue

Vol. 75, Iss. 15 — 15 April 2007

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