Surface modification by swift (∼100 MeV) Si7+ and Au7+ ions irradiation in n-GaAs

AFM studies of swift (∼100 MeV) heavy ions (of Si7+ and Au7+) irradiated n-GaAs have been performed for a variable fluence of 1010-1013 cm−2. The craters with a piled up material are clearly seen in the AFM micrographs. It is observed that the gold ions are inducing more damage than silicon ions as the estimated volume of craters and surface roughness are larger for gold ion irradiation than the silicon ion irradiation. The feature of overlapping craters has also been observed for n-GaAs surfaces. The observed features are related to the large electronic loss of the incident ions, thermal diffusivity and thermal conductivity of the target material.