Diffusion properties of chalcogens (S, Se, Te) into pure silica

The diffusion properties of chalcogens (S, Se, Te) implanted into SiO2 were studied via secondary ion mass spectroscopy (SIMS) profiling between room temperature and the glass transition temperature (800–950 °C). Annealing of Te-containing samples leads directly to precipitation of metallic tellurium nanocrystals within the implantation profile. The S and Se concentration profiles were fitted by using a simple diffusion model in order to provide estimates of the diffusion constant and approximate solubility of these fast moving chemical species. A comparison of their differing diffusion behavior with complementary data on these systems suggests that (i) their oxidation states play a crucial role and (ii) the chalcogen propagation mechanism actually involves complex chemical interactions.