Sputtering yield of amorphous 13C thin films under swift heavy-ion irradiation

The sputtering yield of carbon was measured in the electronic energy loss regime by 194-MeV Au ions irradiation. Due to the overall surface contamination with hydrocarbons, the determination of sputtering yields of carbon materials is quite challenging. To separate carbon omnipresent on most surfaces from sputtered carbon, we used a carbon target consisting of 86% of 13C isotope. By measuring the thickness decrease of the thin 13C film by means of high resolution online Elastic Recoil Detection Analysis (ERDA), a sputtering yield of 49 ± 15 of 13C per Au ion was found. Simultaneously with the sputter process, the 12C content of the target increased probably due to beam-induced bond breaking of hydrocarbons attached to the surface. Our experimental results are analyzed by calculations based on the two-temperature thermal spike model.