Feasibility study on high current ion beam extraction from anode spot plasma for large area ion implantation

In this paper, we have investigated the feasibility of the high current beam extraction from anode spot plasma as an ion source for large area ion implantation. Experiments have been carried out with the ambient plasma produced by inductive coupling with radio-frequency (RF) power of 200 W at the frequency of 13.56 MHz. Anode spot plasmas are generated near the extraction hole of 2 mm in diameter at the center of a bias electrode whose area exposed to the ambient plasma can be changed. It is found that the maximum ion beam current is extracted at the optimum operating pressure at which the area of bias electrode exposed to ambient plasma is fully covered with the anode spot plasma whose size is dominantly determined by the operating pressure for given gas species. It is also observed that the extracted ion beam current increases nonlinearly with the bias power due to the changes in size and shape of the anode spot plasma. With the well-established anode spot plasma operating at the optimum gas pressure, we have successfully extracted high current ion beam of 6.4 mA (204 mA/cm²) at the bias power of 22 W (∼10% of RF power), which is 43 times larger than that extracted from the plasma without anode spot. Based on the experimental results, criteria for electrode design and operating pressure for ion beam extraction from larger extraction aperture are suggested. In addition, the stability of anode spot plasma in the presence of ion beam extraction through an extraction hole is discussed in terms of the particle balance model.     

Focusing dynamics of high-energy density, laser-driven ion beams

The dynamics of the focusing of laser-driven ion beams produced from concave solid targets was studied. Most of the ion beam energy is observed to converge at the center of the cylindrical targets with a spot diameter of 30 μm, which can be very beneficial for applications requiring high beam energy densities. Also, unbalanced laser irradiation does not compromise the focusability of the beam. However, significant filamentation occurs during the focusing, potentially limiting the localization of the energy deposition region by these beams at focus. These effects could impact the applicability of such high-energy density beams for applications, e.g., in proton-driven fast ignition.     

Long-life bismuth liquid metal ion source for focussed ion beam micromachining application

Liquid metal ion sources (LMISs) with Ga as ion species are widely used in focused ion beam (FIB) technology for micromachining and surface treatment on the sub-micron and nano-scale. Key features of a LMIS for investigating mechanical properties and 3D-microfabrication of materials are long life-time, high brightness, stable ion current and a highly effective milling ability for the material to be modified. In order to increase the material removal rate, heavier ions than Ga and their clusters should be applied. Bismuth (Bi) is the heaviest, non-radio-active element in the periodic table, is non-toxic and exhibits a low melting point. We have thus produced a long-life (about 1000 h) Bi LMIS with a good beam performance, applicable in any FIB system. Since Bi is the only element in this source, it is not necessary to separate it from other ions by a mass filter. Investigation of the sputtering rate of NiTi shape memory alloys using Ga and Bi LMIS showed that, for the same experimental conditions, the material removal rate with using of Bi_n^k+ ions in a standard FIB machine without a mass separator is about five times larger compared to Ga⁺ ions. This use of Bi as LMIS-species is the ultimate breakthrough in sputtering applications.     

Novel matching lens and spherical ionizer for a cesium sputter ion source

The beam optics of a multi-sample sputter ion source, based on the NEC MCSNICS, has been modified to accommodate cathode voltages higher than 5 kV and dispenses with the nominal extractor. The cathode voltage in Cs sputter sources plays the role of the classical extractor accomplishing the acceleration of beam particles from eV to keV energy, minimizing space charge effects and interactions between the beam and residual gas. The higher the cathode voltage, the smaller are these contributions to the emittance growth. The higher cathode voltage also raises the Child’s law limit on the Cs current resulting in substantially increased output. The incidental focusing role of the extractor is reallocated to a deceleration Einzel lens and the velocity change needed to match to the pre-acceleration tube goes to a new electrode at the tube entrance. All electrodes are large enough to ensure that the beam fills less than 30% of the aperture to minimize aberrations. The improvements are applicable to sputter sources generally.     

Positive ion extraction from plasma source and its application in fusion research

Neutral Beam Injection (NBI) is well established technique for heating tokamak plasma and is used in all fusion research programs [1–2]. In our Steady state Superconducting Tokamak (SST) machine [3], neutral hydrogen beam power of 0.5 MW at 30 kV is required to raise plasma ion temperature of ∼1 keV. Future upgrade of the SST will require 1.7 MW of H^o at 55 kV. To fulfill this requirement, an ion extractor system (heart of any NBI system) has been designed to extract 35A H⁺ beam current at 30 kV and of 90 A at 55 kV respectively [4]. In this paper, we have described the physics and ion beam optics study for an ion extraction system suitable for above mentioned long dynamic range of acceleration voltage. The ion beam optics simulation result is used as an input to the engineering design. After fabrication, its performance test has been done. The experimental results are in very good agreement with beam optics simulation.     

Direct patterning of gold oxide thin films by focused ion-beam irradiation

For direct writing of electrically conducting connections and areas into insulating gold oxide thin films a scanning Ar⁺ laser beam and a 30 keV Ga⁺ focused ion beam (FIB) have been used. The gold oxide films are prepared by magnetron sputtering under argon/oxygen plasma. The patterning of larger areas (dimension 10–100 μm) has been carried out with the laser beam by local heating of the selected area above the decomposition temperature of AuO_x (130–150 °C). For smaller dimensions (100 nm to 10 μm) the FIB irradiation could be used. With both complementary methods a reduction of the sheet resistance by 6–7 orders of magnitude has been achieved in the irradiated regions (e.g. with FIB irradiation from 1.5×10⁷ Ω/□ to approximately 6 Ω/□). The energy-dispersive X-ray analysis (EDX) show a considerably reduced oxygen content in the irradiated areas, and scanning electron microscopy (SEM), as well as atomic force microscopy (AFM) investigations, indicate that the FIB patterning in the low-dose region (10¹⁴ Ga⁺/cm²) is combined with a volume reduction, which is caused by oxygen escape rather than by sputtering. Received: 30 May 2000 / Accepted: 31 May 2000 / Published online: 13 July 2000     

Circular ion diode with self-magnetic insulation

The results of a study of the generation of a gigawatt-level pulsed ion beam formed by a diode with an explosive-emission potential electrode in self-magnetic insulation mode are presented. The experiments have been performed on the TEMP-4M ion accelerator operating in double-pulse formation mode: the first pulse is negative polarity (300–500 ns, 100–150 kV) and the second is positive (150 ns, 250–300 kV). The ion current density is 20–40 A/cm²; the beam consists of protons and carbon ions. To increase the efficiency of the ion current generation, a circular geometry diode is proposed. It is shown that with the new design, the plasma is effectively formed over the entire working surface of the graphite potential electrode. During ion beam generation, magnetic insulation of the electrons is achieved over the entire length of the diode (B/B _cr ≥ 3). Because of the high drift velocity, the transit time of electrons in the anode-cathode gap is 3–5 ns, whilst the transit time of C⁺ carbon ions exceeds 8 ns. This indicates low efficiency self-magnetic insulation for this geometry of diode. At the same time, it has been observed experimentally that during ion current generation (the second pulse), the electron component of the total current is suppressed by a factor of 4–5. A new mechanism of limiting the electron emission, which explains the decrease in the electron component of the total current in the circular diode with self-magnetic insulation, is proposed.     

Etched facet and semiconductor/air DBR facet of a AlGaInP laser diode prepared by focused ion beam milling

The study of focused ion beam (FIB) milling for making etched facet and semiconductor/air distributed Bragg reflector (DBR) facets of AlGaInP-based red laser diodes (LD) is presented in this letter. For the Ga ion beam current of 100 pA at fixed accelerated voltage 30 kV, FIB milling rate of GaAs was found to be 0.46 μm³/nC. As a trade-off between high reflectivity and enough technical tolerance, the combination of third Bragg orders of semiconductor wall and air gap was chosen. The deeply etched mirror and distributed Bragg reflector facet consisting of pairs of semiconductor wall/air gap on laser diodes (LD) cavity facets with vertical sidewall on AlGaInP LDs were fabricated by focused Ga ion beam milling. Comparison of the AlGaInP LD with the mirrors between cleaved and FIB made facet was given and discussed.     

Microfabrication techniques using focused ion beams and emergent applications.

The application of focused ion beam (FIB) machining in several technologies aimed at microstructure fabrication is presented. These emergent applications include the production of micromilling tools for machining of metals and the production of microsurgical tools. An example of the use of microsurgical manipulators in a circulatory system measurement is presented. The steps needed to transform the laboratory fabrication of these tools and manipulators into a routine FIB production process are discussed. The ion milling of three-dimensional cavities by the exact solution of a mathematical model of the FIB deflection is demonstrated. A good agreement between the model calculation and the ion beam control has been obtained for parabolic and cosine cross-section features with planes of symmetry.     

Stimulated brillouin scattering of electromagnetic ion cyclotron waves in a plasma

Using the fluid model for the nonlinear response of ions, we have studied the nonlinear scattering of an electromagnetic ion cyclotron wave off the ion acoustic wave in a plasma. The low frequency nonlinearity arises through the parallel ponderomotive force on ions and the high frequency nonlinearity arises through the nonlinear current density of ions. For a typical nonisothermal plasma (T _e/T _i∼10) the threshold for this instability in a uniform plasma is ∼1mW/cm². At power densities ≳10² W/cm², the growth rate for backscatter turns out to be ∼10⁴s⁻¹.     

Amorphous solid foam structures on germanium by heavy ion irradiation

Ge (100) surfaces were irradiated by heavy Bi⁺ and Bi⁺⁺ ions extracted from a Bi-liquid metal ion source in a mass separated focused ion beam system with energies of 30 and 60 keV, respectively. Networks of different nanoporous (or sponge like) structures were found depending on ion energy, fluence, angle of incidence, and irradiation temperature. The porous and amorphous surface structures are explained in terms of high concentration vacancies close to the surface. The surface modification was investigated using SEM and AFM imaging and FIB for cross section preparation.     

Axially magnetized electron–positron and electron plasma competition on the self focusing of intense laser beam

The spot-size evolution of circularly polarized intense laser beam propagating through the axially magnetized electron–positron (EP) and electron plasmas is discussed, in mildly relativistic and weakly non-linear (a² ? 1) regime. The non-linear current density source terms are obtained by making used of the perturbative technique. The variational principle approach method is applied to the solution of the non-linear Schrodinger wave equation. It is shown that the laser beam spot size decreases for the left and increases for the right handed polarized beams with increasing the external magnetic field, owing to the beam passages inside the electron plasma. Furthermore, it is revealed that the self focusing property strongly enhanced in the EP plasma in comparison to the electron plasma. Moreover, self focusing of linearly polarized laser beam is investigated for EP plasma by superposition of the right and left circularly polarized beams.     

Submicron focusing of XUV radiation from a laser plasma source using a multilayer Laue lens

The focusing properties of a one-dimensional multilayer Laue lens (MLL) were investigated using monochromatic soft X-ray radiation from a table-top, laser-produced plasma source. The MLL was fabricated by a focused ion beam (FIB) structuring of pulsed laser deposited ZrO₂/Ti multilayers. This novel method offers the potential to overcome limitations encountered in electron lithographic processes. Utilizing this multilayer Laue lens, a line focus of XUV radiation from a laser-induced plasma in a nitrogen gas puff target could be generated. The evaluated focal length is close to the designed value of 220 μm for the measurement wavelength of 2.88 nm. Divergence angle and beam waist diameter are measured by a moving knife edge and a far-field experiment, determining all relevant second-order moments based beam parameters. The waist diameter has been found to be approximately 370 nm (FWHM).     

Beam focusing in a linear ion accelerator consisting of a periodic sequence of independently phased superconducting cavities

Focusing of a low-energy beam of heavy ions in a linear accelerator based on a periodic sequence of independently phased superconducting cavities is considered. The possibility of heavy ion beam focusing by a system of superconducting solenoids is analyzed. The advantages and disadvantages of this focusing technique are considered. It is shown that solenoids with a magnetic field exceeding B = 15 T are required for focusing ion beams with a small charge-to-mass ratio Z/A ≈ 1/66 in a superconducting accelerator.     

Positron moderation and remoderation techniques for producing cold positron and positronium sources

We review the physics of the negative affinity and hot-positron moderators that allow us to produce intense beams of slow positrons. By repeated staes of remoderation a positron beam can be focused to a microscopic spot on a solid target with little loss of intensity. The positronium (Ps) and positronium negative ions (Ps⁻) produced by such a spot will be bright enough to permit the formation of well-collimated Ps beams suitable for gravitational free fall and other experiments.     

Focused ion beam based sputtering yield measurements on ZnO and Mo thin films

In order to facilitate the lateral structuring of solar cell multilayer structures, the ion beam sputtering behaviour of Mo and ZnO thin films deposited onto soda-lime glass and single crystalline Si substrates was studied. Prior to ion beam processing the layers were analyzed by Energy Dispersive X-Ray Spectrometry (EDS), X-Ray Diffractometry (XRD) and Rutherford Backscattering (RBS). In order to characterize the ion beam sputtering of the investigated layers, 2×2 μm² fractions of the thin films were removed by a scanned 30 keV focused Ga⁺ ion beam (FIB) in a dual beam system. SEM images taken during the milling process allowed continuous monitoring of the process without breaking the vacuum. The depth of the groove after removal of the layers was measured by Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM) and was plotted as a function of the ion dose. The sputtering depth has a dependence on the ion dose that is close to linear. The deviation from linearity is produced by heating effects at high beam currents. Sputtering yield values calculated from the experiments and simulations showed good agreement in the case of Mo but deviation was found in the case of ZnO.     

Possibility of lowering the effective emittance of neutralized ion beams

Self-similarity conditions are determined for the steady states of a quasineutral beam plasma generated during the transport of ion beams in a gaseous medium. The self-consistent radial distribution of the beam and plasma densities is taken into account. Under the resulting conditions the radial electric field of the beam-plasma system is linear, and it is possible for beams to be transported without nonlinear distortion of their phase response characteristics or an increase in the effective emittance. Zh. Tekh. Fiz. 68, 112–115 (April 1998)     

Fast ion beams from intense,femtosecond laser irradiated nanostructured surfaces

We present results on hot electron and energetic ion (keV–MeV) generation from polished and nanostructured metallic surfaces excited by p-polarized, femtosecond laser pulses in the intensity range of 1×10¹⁵–1.5×10¹⁷ W cm^-2. A clear enhancement in the hard X-ray spectrum from nanoparticle-coated surfaces is observed, indicating ‘hotter’ electron production in nanoparticle-produced plasma until the intensity of 2×10¹⁶ W cm^-2 is reached. Contrary to the existing perception, we find that the hotter electrons do not lead to hotter ion emission. The total ion flux and the ion energy integrated over the 4–1400 keV energy range are found to be enhanced by 50% and 16%, respectively, for nanostructured targets in comparison to those from polished targets. 55% enhancement in yield is observed for ions at the lower end of the energy range, while hotter ions are actually found to be suppressed by ∼40%. The surface modulations present on the nanoparticle-coated targets are observed to reduce the maximum energy of the ions and showed an intensity-dependent increase in the divergence of the ion beam. PACS 79.20.Ds; 68.47.De; 61.80.Ba; 61.82.Bg; 42.65.Re     

Effect of the ionization process on the focusing of a relativistic electron beam by a gas-plasma lens

A numerical simulation is made of the processes occurring in a plasma lens under conditions when the focusing of a relativistic electron beam is strongly affected by the ionization of the residual gas in the lens region by the beam itself. The paraxial, azimuthally symmetric, 1.5-dimensional, electrostatic kinetic model, taking account of plasma production, expansion of the plasma electrons away from the beam region, and contraction of the ions toward the axis of the beam, was used for the calculation. The dynamics of the formation of a focal spot is studied, and the size and position of the spot are determined as functions of time for different values of the gas pressure, initial plasma density, and energy of the beam electrons. Zh. Tekh. Fiz. 67, 90–94 (October 1997)     

NSCL/MSU ECR离子源项目进展报告

Since the last ECR Workshop,NSCL/MSU has been involved in a vigorous ECR ion source R&D program,which resulted in the construction of an off-line test ECR ion source(ARTEMIS-B)for new beam development and ion optics studies.Also the design and partial completion of a 3rd generation,fully superconducting ECR ion source,SuSI has been accomplished.This paper is an overview of the construction projects and the different R&D activities performed with the existing ion sources.These activities include development of metallic ion beam production methods using evaporation with resistive and inductive ovens and sputtering of very refractory metals.Ion optics developments include testing different focusing elements(magnetic solenoid lens,electrostatic quadrupole triplet lens,Einzel lens,electrostatic double doublet quadrupole combined with an octupole lens),and different beam forming and diagnostics devices.The detailed results will be presented at the workshop in separate talks and posters.