High-energy heavy ion irradiation of HOPG

Understanding the behavior of the graphite under extreme conditions is very important for its use in applications related to the nuclear technology. In this work, we used atomic force microscopy, scanning tunnelling microscopy, and Raman spectroscopy to study the graphite response to high-energy heavy ions irradiation. On the surface, we found ion tracks after grazing incidence ion irradiation by 23 MeV I, which makes the graphite surface susceptible to this type of irradiation. Within the bulk, no tracks have been found after normal incidence irradiation. However, we show that electronic energy loss plays a role in defect recovery, making graphite below the surface even more stable to the high-energy heavy ion irradiation.(c) 2023 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Automated summary

In this study, we used atomic force microscopy, scanning tunnelling microscopy, and Raman spectroscopy to investigate the response of graphite to high-energy heavy ions irradiation. Ion tracks were observed on the surface after grazing incidence ion irradiation by 23 MeV I, indicating the susceptibility of the graphite surface to this type of irradiation. No tracks were found within the bulk after normal incidence irradiation. However, we demonstrate that electronic energy loss contributes to defect recovery, thus enhancing the stability of graphite below the surface to high-energy heavy ion irradiation.