Ion induced millimetre-scale structures growth on metal surfaces

Polished polycrystalline Plansee tungsten (W) sample with purity 99.99 wt% and 0.75 mm thickness has been exposed to intense argon (Ar) ion beam with average energy of 2 keV and etched through in the centre. As a result, castle-like structures with strong asymmetry and with the height of  >200 µm have been formed. Structures can be observed by naked eyes and with scanning-electron microscopy (SEM). It has been revealed, that the structures have been formed not immediately, but at the later stages of irradiation. Primary factors favouring the formation for the structures are relaxation of the surface stresses and activated surface mobility of atoms.