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Expérience GANIL/IRRSU

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Nanoscale tomography is an outstanding challenge with an urgent need in materials science. In this context, electrostatic force microscopy offers the possibility to investigate nanoparticles buried inside dielectric films. In this paper, finite element modeling has been performed to analyze their detectability with regard to both particles features (size and depth) and dielectric permittivity of the medium. In the case of charged particles, a sign dependence of the detectability was demonstrated by means of observations of local electric fields and equipotential lines deformations.

Thin silicon oxide layers on silicon substrates are investigated by scanning probe microscopy before and after irradiation with 210 MeV Au+ ions. After irradiation and complete chemical etching of the silicon oxide layer, silicon bumps grown on the silicon surface are observed. It is shown that each impinging ion induces one silicon bump at the interface. This observation is consistent with the thermal spike theory. Ion energy loss is transferred to the oxide and induces local melting. Silicon-bump formation is favored when the oxide and oxide-silicon interface are silicon rich.