Low energy ion beam induced changes in structural and thermal properties of polycarbonate

• Ion irradiated of polycarbonate to improve those thermal and mechanical properties.
• The temperature of decomposition is increase from 495.49 °C to 512.33 °C.
• The tensile strength is increase from 9.30 MPa to 16.20 MPa for irradiated samples.
• The Elongation is decreases by increasing ion fluence.
• The stress is increase by increasing ion fluence.

The aim of the present study is extended for obtaining relation between the collision of ion beam with polycarbonate polymer (PC) and the introduced modification of technological applications. Polycarbonate films are irradiated by a 6 keV argon ion beam extracted from locally design cold cathode ion source with different ion fluences. The films are characterized using X-ray Diffraction (XRD), Mechanical tester, Differential Scanning Calorimetry (DSC) and Thermogravimetric Analysis (TGA). The increase in ion beam irradiation leads to an increase in the tensile strength and reduction in elongation at break for PC. TGA Analysis shows that the thermal decomposition temperature of irradiated polycarbonate changes with ion fluence. The DSC graphs show improvements in thermal stability with increase in the activation energy after ion beam irradiation. Ion penetration depths and distributions of scattered atoms are calculated using SRIM Monte Carlo simulation programs.