Polyethylene terephthalate (PET) bulk film analysis using C60+, Au3+, and Au+ primary ion beams

The damage characteristics of polyethylene terephthalate (PET) have been studied under bombardment by C60+, Au3+ and Au+ primary ions. The observed damage cross-sections for the three ion beams are not dramatically different. The secondary ion yields however were significantly enhanced by the polyatomic primary ions where the secondary ion yield of the [M + H]+ is on average 5× higher for C60+ than Au3+ and 8× higher for Au3+ than Au+. Damage accumulates under Au+ and Au3+ bombardment while C60+ bombardment shows a lack of damage accumulation throughout the depth profile of the PET thick film up to an ion dose of ∼1 × 1015 ions cm−2. These properties of C60+ bombardment suggest that the primary ion will be a useful molecular depth profiling tool.