Abstract
The structural transformations induced in Gd2Ti2O7 single crystals irradiated at high energies (870 MeV Xe), where ionization processes (electronic stopping) dominate, and at low energies (4 MeV Au), where ballistic processes (nuclear stopping) dominate, have been studied via the combination of Rutherford backscattering spectrometry and channeling, Raman spectroscopy and transmission electron microscopy experiments. At high energy, amorphization occurs directly in individual ion tracks from the extreme electronic energy deposition from ionization, and full amorphization results from the overlapping of these tracks as described by a direct impact model. The track diameters determined from RBS/C and TEM data lie in the range 6-8 nm. At low energy, amorphization occurs via indirect processes, driven by ballistic nuclear energy deposition from the ions, that is accounted for in the framework of both the direct-impact/defect stimulated and multi-step damage accumulation models. The ion fluence for total amorphization of the irradiated layer is much higher (0.5 ion nm-2) at low energy than at high energy (0.05 ion nm-2), consistent with the nuclear stopping at low energy (5.2 keV/nm) compared to the electronic stopping at high energy (29 keV/nm).