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A typographical error remains in the publication of the first name of Aymann S. El-Said: Aymann should be written as Ayman.

International audience; Sputtering experiments were performed by irradiating LiF, NaCl, and RbCl crystals with various swift heavy ions like S, Ni, I, Au with energies between 60 and 210 MeV, C$_{60}$ clusters between 12 and 30 MeV or Pb ions between 730 and 6040 MeV. Sputtered species are collected on arc-shaped catchers and subsequently analyzed by elastic recoil detection analysis or Rutherford backscattering analysis. The study focuses on angular distributions and total yields for LiF and covers a broad range of experimental parameters including cleaved or rough sample surfaces, ion fluence, beam incident angles, and different ion velocities leading to electronic energy loss (S$_{e}$) values from 5 to 45 keV/nm. In most cases, the angular distribution has two components, a jet-like peak perpendicular to the surface sample superimposed on a broad isotropic cosine distribution whatever is the beam incident angle. The observation of the jet depends mainly on the surface flatness and angle of ion incidence. However, the jet does not appear clearly when irradiated with C$_{60}$ cluster. The sputtering yield is stoichiometric and characterized by huge total yields of up to a few 10$^{5}$ atoms per incident ion. The yield follows a power law as function of electronic energy loss, Y follows an exponential law with S$_{e}^{n}$ with n ~ 4. While the azimuthal symmetry for sputtering is observed at low ion velocity (~1 MeV/u), it seems to be lost at high velocity (>4 MeV/u). The data provide a comprehensive overview how the angular distribution and the total sputtering yield scale with the energy loss, beam incidence angle and ion velocity. Complementary experiments have been done with NaCl and RbCl targets confirming the observation made for LiF.[graphic not available: see fulltext][graphic not available: see fulltext]

The study of polymers irradiated by highly energetic ions and the resulting radiation-induced degradation is of major importance for space and particle accelerator applications. The mechanism of ion-induced molecular fragmentation of polyethylene, polyethyleneimine and polyamide was investigated by means of mass spectrometry and infrared spectroscopy. The results show that the introduction of nitrogen and oxygen into the polymer influences the stability rendering aliphatic polymers with heteroatoms less stable. A comparison to thermal decomposition data from literature reveals that ion-induced degradation is different in its bond fracture mechanism. While thermal degradation starts at the weakest bond, which is usually the carbon-heteroatom bond, energetic ion irradiation leads in the first step to scission of all types of bonds creating smaller molecular fragments. This is due to the localized extreme energy input under non-equilibrium conditions when the ions transfer kinetic energy onto electrons. These findings are of relevance for the choice of polymers for long-term application in both space and accelerator facilities.

International audience; Sputtering experiments with swift heavy ions in the electronic energy loss regime were performed by using the catcher technique in combination with elastic recoil detection analysis. The angular distribution of particles sputtered from the surface of LiF single crystals is composed of a jet-like peak superimposed on a broad isotropic distribution. By using incident ions of fixed energy but different charges states, the influence of the electronic energy loss on both components is probed. We find indications that isotropic sputtering originates from near-surface layers, whereas the jet component may be affected by contributions from depth up to about 150 nm.

Well-defined, porous carbon monoliths are highly promising materials for electrochemical applications, separation, purification and catalysis. In this work, we present an approach allowing to transfer the remarkable degree of synthetic control given by the ion-track etching technology to the fabrication of carbon membranes with porosity structured on multiple length scales. The carbonization and pore formation processes were examined with Raman, Brunauer–Emmett–Teller (BET), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and X-ray diffraction (XRD) measurements, while model experiments demonstrated the viability of the carbon membranes as catalyst support and pollutant adsorbent. Using ion-track etching, specifically designed, continuous channel-shaped pores were introduced into polyimide foils with precise control over channel diameter, orientation, density and interconnection. At a pyrolysis temperature of 950 °C, the artificially created channels shrunk in size, but their shape was preserved, while the polymer was transformed to microporous, amorphous carbon. Channel diameters ranging from ∼10 to several 100 nm could be achieved. The channels also gave access to previously closed micropore volume. Substantial surface increase was realized, as it was shown by introducing a network consisting of 1.4 × 1010 channels per cm2 of 30 nm diameter, which more than tripled the mass-normalized surface of the pyrolytic carbon from 205 m2 g−1 to 732 m2 g−1. At a pyrolysis temperature of 3000 °C, membranes consisting of highly ordered graphite were obtained. In this case, the channel shape was severely altered, resulting in a pronounced conical geometry in which the channel diameter quickly decreased with increasing distance to the membrane surface.

Degradation of polyvinyl polymers (polyvinyl formal, polyvinyl alcohol, and polyvinyl acetate) by high-energy heavy ions was analysed with in situ mass spectrometry and infrared spectroscopy. Both at room temperature and at cryogenic temperature, the polymers are severely damaged by scission of side chains and the polymer backbone, releasing a large number of molecular fragments. Correlation of structural analysis of the damaged polymer and mass analysis of its volatile fragments gives plausible reaction mechanisms for the ion induced degradation. These are compared to thermal degradation. The differences found between the two degradation processes are due to the non-equilibrium character of the ion based process with its high electronic excitation and ionisation. The results are of practical relevance for applications of the polymers in devices of particle accelerators and space vehicles.

Electroless plating of metal films on polymer substrates usually requires the presence of metal particles acting as catalytically active nuclei for the deposition reaction. Herein, we present a novel and versatile approach towards the activation of polycarbonate substrates with metal nanoparticles. It is based on the diffusion of dimethylaminoborane into the polymer matrix, followed by reaction of the sensitized substrates with metal salt solutions. The reducing agent uptake was controlled by changing the duration of the sensitization and the dimethylaminoborane concentration in the sensitization solution. Different seed types (Ag, Au, Pd, Pt and Rh) were deposited by variation of the activation solution. The proposed mechanism was confirmed with FTIR and TEM measurements. In addition, AFM revealed that apart from a slight roughening in the nanometer range, the surface morphology of the polymer remained unchanged, rendering the method viable for template-based nanomaterial fabrication. Due to its pronounced variability, the new technique allows to tailor the activity of polymer substrates for consecutive electroless plating. The feasibility and nanoscale homogeneity of the process were proven by the electroless fabrication of well-defined Au and Pt nanotubes in ion-track etched polycarbonate templates. The combination of features (use of simple and easily scalable wet-chemical processes, facile seed variation, high activation quality on complex surfaces) renders the outlined technique promising for the fabrication of intricate nanomaterials as well as for the metallization of macroscopic work pieces.

The possibility of varying the beam parameters and applying the effect of a pre-etching treatment for poly(vinylidene fluoride) (PVDF) ion-track membranes was investigated with the goal of achieving enhanced track etching for effective control of the pore size and shape. Commercially available 25 μm-thick PVDF films were irradiated at room temperature with swift heavy ions from the JAEA’s TIARA cyclotron and GSI’s UNILAC linear accelerator. Irradiation with a higher linear energy transfer (LET) beam gave faster track etching and larger pores, suggesting that the LET could be the most crucial factor determining the pore size. In-situ infra-red absorption and residual gas analyses shed light on the detailed chemistry of not only the ion-induced degradation, but also post-irradiation reactions. The pre-etching treatment effect involved oxidation of the unsaturated bonds within the latent track, which accelerated the chemical dissolution for efficient pore evolution. In other words, exposure to a gaseous oxidant, i.e., ozone, shortened the breakthrough time.

The breakdown voltage of radiation damaged polyimide is investigated. Motivated by the application of polyimide as insulator used in ion accelerator magnets of the future Facility for Antiproton and Ion Research (FAIR), two different kinds of polyimides were irradiated with different high energetic ion beams (p, C, Ni, Ru and Au) and with gamma radiation from a Co-60 source. Breakdown voltage measurements showed that the dielectric strength of irradiated polyimide was found to decrease as a function of the irradiation dose. The rate of decrease was found to be dependent on i) the type of radiation and ii) the angle of incident beam. Gamma and proton radiation leads only to minor changes in the observed dose regime while heavy ion irradiation drastically decreases the dielectric strength at even low doses. For heavy ion irradiation the rate of decrease is found to be dependent on the energy loss of the used particle beams. Furthermore an increase in incident beam angle, i.e. closer to the surface normal gives a lower decrease in the dielectric strength suggesting that the breakdown follows the path length of the produced ion tracks. Weibull analysis was used on a selected data set to discuss failure expectations for the later FAIR magnets.

Polyvinyl formal (Formvar®) foils were irradiated with 5.4 MeV/u Au ions and analysed in-situ by residual gas analysis and infrared spectroscopy. The experiment was performed at the new materials-research beamline (M-branch) at the universal linear accelerator of the GSI Helmholtz Centre in Darmstadt (Germany). Simultaneously analysing outgassing fragments and changes within the irradiated polymer film allows monitoring details of the degradation process. Ion-induced degradation of polyvinyl formal is characterized by fragmentation of side chains of the polymer backbone. The infrared spectra show the formation of unsaturated hydrocarbons and ketones. A possible degradation mechanism is proposed including the production of enols as reported earlier for degradation of polyvinyl alcohol exposed to gamma radiation.

In our study, we examined the formation of thin films of silver nanoparticles on polycarbonate and the influence of the silver loading on the electroless synthesis of metal nanotubes. Control of the silver film thickness occurred by consecutive dipping of the polymer template in tin(II) and silver(I) solutions. The deposition progress was studied using UV-Vis spectroscopy. The reaction mechanism relies on the adsorption of reactive ions on the polymer template as well as on the silver nanoparticles. The initial catalytic activity of silver-covered ion track etched polycarbonate is an important governing factor for the electroless synthesis of metal nanotubes with desired thickness and shape. Therefore, the presented method allows specific template preparation according to given synthetic demands. High aspect ratio copper, gold, and platinum nanotubes were produced by the combination of sufficiently activated templates with optimized electroless plating procedures.

The paper presents new experimental results and FLUKA-simulations of residual activation induced by high-energy argon ions in copper. It follows the previous residual activation studies performed at GSI Helmholtzzentrum fur Schwerionenforschung in Darmstadt with uranium ions as a preparatory work for constructing the FAIR facility. Copper samples were irradiated by 1 GeV/u and 500 MeV/u 40Ar ions and investigated by gamma-ray spectroscopy. The samples were irradiated in the stacked-foil geometry. The isotopes with dominating contribution to the total residual activity were identified and their partial activities were quantified. Depth-profiling of the partial residual activities of all identified isotopes was performed by measurements of individual target foils. The experimental results were compared with simulations by the FLUKA-code. A satisfactory agreement between the experiment and the simulations was observed.

The paper reviews the activities and reports the current results of GSI-INTAS projects that are dealing with investigations of construction materials for high-power accelerators and their components. Three types of materials have been investigated, namely metals (stainless steel and copper), metallic glasses (Nanoperm, Finemet and Vitrovac) and organic materials (polyimide insulators and glass fiber reinforced plastics/GFRP). The materials were irradiated by different ion beams with various fluencies and energies. The influence of radiation on selected physical properties of these materials has been investigated with the aid of gamma-ray spectroscopy, transmission Mossbauer spectroscopy (TMS), conversion electrons Mossbauer spectroscopy (CEMS), optical spectroscopy (IR and UV/VIS) and other analytical methods. Some experiments were accompanied with computer simulations by FLUKA, SHIELD and SRIM codes. Validity of the codes was verified by comparison of the simulation results with experiments. After the va...

In this study, we demonstrate that the combination of relativistic heavy ions with pressure can influence the phase behavior of ZrO2 in ways none of those two extreme conditions alone could. The response behavior of ZrO2 towards ion irradiation under different pressure conditions is investigated. ZrO2 exposed to energetic particles is known to undergo a crystalline-to-crystalline phase transition from the monoclinic to the tetragonal phase. In agreement with earlier findings, this structural change requires also for heaviest ions, such as Au, Pb, and U, a multiple ion impact. If the irradiation is performed under high pressure, the monoclinic-to-tetragonal transformation occurs at a fluence that is more than one order of magnitude lower suggesting a single impact process. Raman measurements at ambient conditions and X-ray diffraction analysis of the samples irradiated under pressure revealed that the monoclinic-to-tetragonal transformation under pressure is not a direct process but involves a transition into the cubic high-temperature structure, before the tetragonal structure becomes stable under decompression. At even higher pressures, the additional ion irradiation forces ZrO2 to transform to the higher orthorhombic-II phase that is far away from its stability field.

A new target station providing Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) spectroscopy and residual gas analysis (RGA) for in situ observation of ion-induced changes in polymers has been installed at the GSI Helmholtz Centre for Heavy Ion Research. The installations as well as first in situ measurements at room temperature are presented here. A foil of polyimide Kapton HN(®) was irradiated with 1.1 GeV Au ions. During irradiation several in situ FT-IR spectra were recorded. Simultaneously outgassing degradation products were detected with the RGA. In the IR spectra nearly all bands decrease due to the degradation of the molecular structure. In the region from 3000 to 2700 cm(-1) vibration bands of saturated hydrocarbons not reported in literature so far became visible. The outgassing experiments show a mixture of C(2)H(4), CO, and N(2) as the main outgassing components of polyimide. The ability to combine both analytical methods and the opportunity to measure a whole fluence series within a single experiment show the efficiency of the new setup.

1. IntroductionSoft-magnetic metallic glasses are considered for mag-netic cores of accelerator radio-frequency (RF) cavities.In this particular application, they are exposed to ionirradiation, which alters their magnetic properties. Theradiation eld is rather complex (di erent particles, en-ergies and uences) because it originates from interactionof lost primary heavy ions with the beam-pipe producingdi erent secondary particles. That is why a systematicstudy of the in uence of ion irradiation on magnetic prop-erties of the soft-magnetic metallic glasses is important.Our study is connected to the AIRF project [1]. Hav-ing some experience with neutron- and laser-irradiationof di erent metallic glasses [2, 3], we started with lightions [4, 5]. However, the data for light ions cannotbe extrapolated to heavy ions, because the mechanismof radiation damage is qualitatively di erent for lightvs. heavy ions [6]. The recent work covers a,T Auand U ions irradiating ribbons of VITRAOCV

Finemet and Vitrovac±R 6025 metallic glasses were irradiated by light (N) and heavy (Au and Ta) ions at different energies from 110 keV to 250 MeV/u (MeV per mass unit) and fluences from 1 £ 1011 ions/cm2 to 1£1017 ions/cm2. They were analysed by the Mossbauer spectrometry and magnetic susceptibility measurements. Qualitative differences were observed between the radiation effects caused by light and heavy ions.