Electrical behaviour of butyl acrylate/methyl methacrylate copolymer films irradiated with 1.5 MeV electron beam

Electrical conductivity and dielectric parameters of the (BuA/MMA) copolymer films irradiated with 1.5 MeV electron beam (EB) have been studied. The samples were irradiated with different doses of the electron beam: 5, 10, 50, 125 and 200 kGy. The electrical conductivity of the samples was found to decrease as the irradiation dose increases. The temperature dependence of the direct current (dc) conductivity for unirradiated and irradiated samples has been obtained over a temperature range from 293 to 373 K. The activation energy values were calculated for all samples. Moreover, measurements of the dielectric constant, dielectric loss and alternating current (ac) conductivity were performed at a frequency range from 100 Hz to 5 MHz at room temperature. The results indicated that the EB irradiation has formed some traps in the energy gap, which reduce the movement of the charge carriers. Furthermore, a direct proportional relationship between the activation energy and the irradiation dose was estimated in two regions: below and above the glass transition temperature of the polymer. Dipole relaxation was observed in the samples, and the dose effect was found to shift this relaxation towards higher frequencies.     

Physio-chemical influence of high electron-phonon coupling induced by 120 MeV Ag9+ SHI irradiation on exfoliated MoS2 - PVA nanocomposite films for achieving remarkable electrical conductivity for potential application in organic electronics

Swift heavy ion (SHI) irradiation technology is known to enhance the optical, electronic, mechanical, and electrical properties in polymer nanocomposites by the virtue of electron-phonon coupling. In the present work, Molybdenum disulphide (MoS₂), a two-dimensional metal dichalcogenide, has been exfoliated via liquid-phase exfoliation using N-methyl-2- pyrrolidone (NMP) as the solvent that yielded nanosheets of around 2–4 layers as depicted by HR-TEM images. MoS₂ - PVA free-standing films were prepared by wet chemical technique i.e. solution casting method and irradiated by focussed high-energy Ag⁹⁺ ion beam at fluence range of 1E10 - 3E11 ions/cm². As a consequence, the structural modification was observed by X-Ray diffraction studies that showed the shift of (002) plane of MoS₂ while Raman studies indicated the decrease of degree of disorderness at fluence 1E10 ions/cm². SHI irradiation has found to induce a two-order increase in the electrical conductivity yielding a 9.7 E-3 S/cm against that of the pristine films at 2.6E-5 S/cm. The enhanced conductivity is attributed to the induced dispersion and annealing of MoS₂ nanosheets in the PVA matrix due to the interaction of 120 MeV Ag⁹⁺ ion beam irradiation as explained by Thermal spike model.     

Spectroscopic and electrical studies for the influence of ion beam and X-ray irradiation on poly-2-(N-propenamido-2-methylpropanesulfonic acid) and its polymer complex with cobalt chloride

The influence of argon ion beam and X-ray irradiations on poly-2-(N-propenamido-2-methylpropanesulfonic acid) (PPMPS) and its polymer complex with Co (II), (PPMPS-Co (II)), were studied using IR, UV/visible and d.c. electrical conductivity. After irradiation the polymer changed in color and become less soluble. The IR spectrum of irradiated PPMPS shows broadened bands at 3400 and 3550 cm^-1 which are assigned to stretch bands of NH and OH, respectively, as a consequence of intramolecular cyclization. Furthermore, a comparison of IR and UV/visible spectra of irradiated and non-irradiated PPMPS-Co(II), reveals that the main effect of irradiation was the degradation effect. Measurements of d.c. electrical conductivity for irradiated and non-irradiated polymers showed an increase of conductivity for the coordinated polymers compared to PPMPS. A relatively higher resistivity for the ion beam irradiated polymers and lower resistivity in case of X-ray irradiation have been observed. The increases of conductivity for the coordinated polymers compared to PPMPS were explained by the changes in glass transition temperatures (T_g) and activation energies for the different polymers.     

Swift heavy ion induced modification in dielectric and microhardness properties of polymer composites

Polymer composites with different concentrations of organometallics (ferric oxalate) dispersed PMMA were prepared. PMMA was synthesized by solution polymerization technique. These films were irradiated with 120 MeV Ni¹⁰⁺ ions in the fluence range 10¹¹-5 × 10¹² ions/cm². The radiation induced modifications in dielectric properties, microhardness, structural changes and surface morphology of polymer composite films have been investigated at different concentrations of filler and ion-fluences. It was observed that electrical conductivity and hardness of the films increase with the concentration of the filler and also with the fluence. The dielectric constant (?) obeys the Universal law given by ?αfⁿ⁻¹. The dielectric constant/loss is observed to change significantly due to irradiation. This suggests that ion beam irradiation promotes the metal to polymer bonding and convert polymeric structure into hydrogen depleted carbon network. This makes the composites more conductive and harder. Surface morphology of the films has been studied using atomic force microscopy (AFM) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The average surface roughness is observed to increase after irradiation as revealed by AFM studies. The SEM images show the blisters type of phenomenon on the surface due to ion beam irradiation.     

Dielectric properties and surface morphology of swift heavy ion beam irradiated polycarbonate films

Swift heavy ion beam irradiation induces modification in the dielectric properties and surface morphologies of polycarbonate (PC) films. The PC films were irradiated by 55 MeV energy of C⁵⁺ beam at various ions fluences ranging from 1 × 10¹¹ to 1 × 10¹³ ions cm^?2. The dielectric properties (i.e., dielectric constant, dielectric loss, and AC conductivity) and surface morphologies of pristine and SHI beam irradiated PC films were investigated by dielectric measurements, atomic force microscopy (AFM), and optical microscopy. The dielectric measurements show that the dielectric constant, dielectric loss, and AC conductivity increase with ion fluences and temperature, however, the dielectric constant and AC conductivity decrease while dielectric loss increases with frequency. AFM shows the increase in average roughness values with ion fluences. The change of color in PC films has been observed from colorless to yellowish and then dark brown with increases of ion fluence by using optical microscopy.     

Physico-chemical transformations in swift heavy ion modified poly(ethyleneterephthalate)

Thin films of poly(ethyleneterephthalate) (PET) were exposed to different radiation dose brought about by 80 MeV carbon and 98 MeV silicon ion beam. The UV-vis absorption studies reveal that there is decrease in optical band gap energy to the extent of ∼29.3 and 42.1%. The X-ray diffraction analyses have shown that crystallite size decreased by ∼18.6 and 52.6%, indicating amorphization of PET. The colour of PET films change from colourless to light yellowish followed by light brown as radiation dose is increased. The colour formation has been ascribed to an increase in conjugation in the carbon chain. In the case of PET irradiated with carbon ion, the electrical conductivity increased with frequency beyond a threshold value of 1 kHz. The increase in conductivity of PET films on irradiation is due to formation of defects and carbon clusters as a result of polymer chain scission. The thermal study further confirmed the increase in amorphous nature with increase in radiation dose. The results indicate that radiation dose brings about significant physicochemical transformations in PET.     

XPS- and AES-investigations of electron and ion beam induced effects on SK16 glass surfaces

Summary Electron beam induced effects in the near surface region of SK16 glass samples (44% SiO₂, 25% B₂O₃, 28% BaO, 3% other) have been studied using Auger electron spectroscopy (AES) with 3 keV primary electrons at different current densities (4.7 mAcm^–2–75 mAcm^–2). It was found that the SiO₂ and B₂O₃ constituents dissociate during electron bombardment to form binding structures which are characteristic for elemental Si and B, respectively. To investigate the influence of the ion beam irradiation on the binding structure, the glass samples were bombarded with Ar⁺ ions of different kinetic energies (0.5 keV–5 keV), followed by XPS analysis. In comparison to the XPS signal of a virgin SK16 surface from a sample fractured in situ under UHV conditions, the FWHM of the photoelectron peaks were found to increase with the bombarding ion energy. Subsequent Auger spectra revealed that the ion bombardment also caused a dissociation of the SiO₂ and B₂O₃ components. Depending on the ion energy, a constant ratio between elemental and oxidized binding form is obtained.     

Development of resonance‐enhanced multiphoton ionization SNMS for state‐selective detection of sputtered atoms under low‐energy ion irradiation

An instrument for a sputtered neutral mass spectrometry with a quadrupole mass spectrometer (QMS) by resonance‐enhanced multiphton ionization method is developed to study sputtered neutrals emission phenomena under ion irradiation in a low‐energy region. We have prepared a pulsed primary ion beam and an ion counting system, and have optimized the operation parameter including a sample bias, energy analyzer voltages, pulsed timing of laser and ion beam, etc. A yield ratio of the lowest‐lying excited state a⁵S₂ to the ground state a⁷S₃ for sputtered Cr atoms has been measured as a function of incident energy of Ar⁺ and O₂⁺ down to 600 eV using a polycrystalline Cr sample. The yield ratio has become a constant value for the Ar⁺ incidence, while it has exponentially increased below 1 keV for the O₂⁺ incidence. It is found that the internal energy distribution of sputtered Cr atoms has been significantly influenced by oxygen density at the surface. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Effect of pulse Nd-YAG laser beam interaction on annealing of nanopowder ITO using spin-on-glass

The effect of pulse Nd-YAG laser on structural and electrical properties of ITO thin film on glass by spin coating process was evaluated. It was found that the beam interaction of pulse laser energy has a significant effect on crystallization, conductivity and optical properties of ITO. Laser irradiation with a wavelength of 1,064 nm and energy of 8–40 J are employed. The conventional X-Ray diffraction studies show the peak intensities of (211), (222), and (440) planes increased by using Nd-YAG laser treatment and prove the crystallization of ITO nanoparticle. Due to absorption of millisecond pulse laser, the resistivity of ITO coating on glass substrate which was annealed at 350 °C, reduced by a factor of 100, and a resistance of less than 0.6 kΩ has been achieved.     

Medium energy,heavy and inert ion irradiation of metallic thin films: studies of surface nano‐structuring and metal burrowing

In context to the ion induced surface nanostructuring of metals and their burrowing in the substrates, we report the influence of Xe and Kr ion‐irradiation on Pt:Si and Ag:Si thin films of ~5‐nm thickness. For the irradiation of thin films, several ion energies (275 and 350 keV of Kr; 450 and 700 keV of Xe) were chosen to maintain a constant ratio of the nuclear energy loss to the electronic energy loss (S_n/S_e) in Pt and Ag films (five in present studies). The ion‐fluence was varied from 1.0 × 10¹⁵ to 1.0 × 10¹⁷ ions/cm². The irradiated films were characterized using Rutherford backscattering spectroscopy (RBS), atomic force microscopy (AFM) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The AFM and SEM images show ion beam induced systematic surface nano‐structuring of thin films. The surface nano‐structures evolve with the ion fluence. The RBS spectra show fluence dependent burrowing of Pt and Ag in Si upon the irradiation of both ion beams. At highest fluence, the depth of metal burrowing in Si for all irradiation conditions remains almost constant confirming the synergistic effect of energy losses by the ion beams. The RBS analysis also shows quite large sputtering of thin films bombarded with ion beams. The sputtering yield varied from 54% to 62% by irradiating the thin films with Xe and Kr ions of chosen energies at highest ion fluence. In the paper, we present the experimental results and discuss the ion induced surface nano‐structuring of Pt and Ag and their burrowing in Si. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

DC Electrical Conductivity of Polymercaptobenzothiazole Disulfide Copper Complex

Polymercaptobenzothiazole disulfide-copper complex PMBTS-Cu has been synthesized by reacting 2-mercaptobenzothiazole disulfide with CuCl₂ in absolute ethanol and dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) under reflux for 24 h. PMBTS-Cu has been characterized by several techniques using electronic spectra, elemental analyses, FTIR spectroscopy, and its solubility has been investigated. DC electrical conductivity variation with temperature, in the range 300–500 K, after annealing for 24 h at 100°C, and doping with different ratios of I₂, is determined for comparison. Doping was done in two ways: by mixing and chemically. Activation energies were calculated and the results were interpreted using the band energy model. DC electrical conductivity of I₂doped PMBTS-Cu complex increased with increasing temperature due to the variation of the carrier concentration with temperature as in the case of semiconductors. PMBTS-Cu complex has a copper ion in its backbone and copper salt is known to be a good dopant. Thus, these materials are doped internally, so the doped polymer-Cu complex are only one or two orders of magnitude higher in DC electrical conductivity than the annealed state. However, the energy gap is very small, which suggests suitability in applications like photovoltaic cells.     

Recent progress of high-power negative ion beam development for fusion plasma heating

A negative-ion-based neutral beam injector (N-NBI) has been constructed for JT-60U. The N-NBI is designed to inject 500 keV, 10 MW neutral beams using two ion sources, each producing a 500 keV, 22 A D⁻ ion beam. In the preliminary experiment using one ion source, a D⁻ ion beam of 13.5 A has been successfully accelerated with an energy of 400 keV (5.4 MW) for 0.12 s at an operating pressure of 0.22 Pa. This is the highest D⁻ beam current and power in the world. Co-extracted electron current was effectively suppressed to the ratio of Ie/I_D⁻ < 1. The highest energy beam of 460 keV, 2.4 A, 0.44 s has also been obtained. To realize 1 MeV class NBI system for ITER (International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor), demonstration of ampere class negative ion beam acceleration up to 1 MeV is an important mile stone. To achieve the mile stone, a prototype accelerator and a 1 MV, 1 A test facility called MeV Test Facility (MTF) were constructed. Up to now, an H⁻ ion beam was accelerated up to the energy of 805 keV with an acceleration drain current of 150 mA for 1 s in a five stage electrostatic multi-aperture accelerator.     

Evaluation and optimization of electron capture dissociation efficiency in fourier transform ion cyclotron resonance mass spectrometry

Electron capture dissociation (ECD) efficiency has typically been lower than for other dissociation techniques. Here we characterize experimental factors that limit ECD and seek to improve its efficiency. Efficiency of precursor to product ion conversion was measured for a range of peptide (∼15% efficiency) and protein (∼33% efficiency) ions of differing sizes and charge states. Conversion of precursor ions to products depends on electron irradiation period and maximizes at ∼5–30 ms. The optimal irradiation period scales inversely with charge state. We demonstrate that reflection of electrons through the ICR cell is more efficient and robust than a single pass, because electrons can cool to the optimal energy for capture, which allows for a wide range of initial electron energy. Further, efficient ECD with reflected electrons requires only a short (∼500 μs) irradiation period followed by an appropriate delay for cooling and interaction. Reflection of the electron beam results in electrons trapped in or near the ICR cell and thus requires a brief (∼50 μs) purge for successful mass spectral acquisition. Further electron irradiation of refractory precursor ions did not result in further dissociation. Possibly the ion cloud and electron beam are misaligned radially, or the electron beam diameter may be smaller than that of the ion cloud such that remaining precursor ions do not overlap with the electron beam. Several ion manipulation techniques and use of a large, movable dispenser cathode reduce the possibility that misalignment of the ion and electron beams limits ECD efficiency.     

Electronic Properties and Morphology of Beam‐Oligomerized 3‐Hexylthiophene

Abstract

A novel means of lithographically forming fluorescent oligothiophene patterns is demonstrated. MgKα x‐ray and low energy electron irradiation of 3‐hexylthiophene (3HT) monomer condensed on a cold metal surface result in the formation of photoluminescent films as thick as several microns. The excitation maxima for the x‐ray‐ and electron‐formed samples are 350 and 405 nm, respectively, with corresponding emission maxima of 430 and 525 nm, indicating that the films are oligomeric rather than polymeric. Ultraviolet photoelectron spectra (UPS) of 3HT monomer and beam‐formed films have been compared with theoretically simulated density‐of‐states spectra of 3HT, thiophene, bithiophene, terthiophene, and quaterthiophene. The radiation‐induced changes in the 3HT UPS valence spectra are explained by delocalization of electrons along the oligomer backbone. Comparison of the experimental UPS and simulated spectra suggests that the average conjugation length of the beam‐formed films is less than six. This is consistent with the photoluminescence results. Fluorescence and atomic force microscopies of electron‐formed samples show the presence of oligomerized 3HT islands residing on a less fluorescent organic background. Electrical conductivity of the beam‐formed samples is low, on the order of 10^?9 cm^?1 ohm^?1, consistent with the formation of islands of conjugated material surrounded by a less electronically delocalized, insulating background. Lack of solubility of the beam‐formed films suggests that partial crosslinking and decomposition may also occur during the oligomerization process.     

Volatile evolution induced by energetic He++ ions in a poly(ester) based polyurethane

Irradiation of polymer samples using an accelerated beam of He⁺⁺ ions passed through a 10 μm thick window of havar foil has been performed. Such an irradiation simulates the effects of large α radiation doses. The experimental set up was designed so that the irradiated material was contained within a small sample chamber, which was isolated from the main vacuum chamber of the ion beam by means of the foil window. A mass spectrometer linked directly to the sample chamber facilitated analysis of gaseous products evolved from the materials as a consequence of irradiation. Samples of a poly(ester) based poly(urethane) polymer evolved mainly CO₂ along with a number of higher mass volatile species. Assignment of chemical structures to the main molecular ions has allowed deductions about the chemical processes underlying radiation induced change to be made. Furthermore, identification of trends in volatile production affords information about radiation induced crosslinking reactions, which do not directly result in the production of volatile species to be deduced.     

MeV Si ions bombardments effects on thermoelectric properties of SiO2/SiO2+Ge nanolayers

The performance of the thermoelectric materials and devices is shown by a dimensionless figure of merit, ZT=S²σT/K, where S is the Seebeck coefficient, σ is the electrical conductivity, T is the absolute temperature and K is the thermal conductivity. ZT can be increased by increasing S, increasing σ, or decreasing K. We have prepared the thermoelectric generator device of SiO₂/SiO₂+Ge multilayer superlattice films using the ion beam assisted deposition (IBAD). The 5 MeV Si ion bombardments have been performed using the AAMU Pelletron ion beam accelerator at five different fluences to make quantum structures (nanodots and/or nanoclusters) in the multilayer superlattice thin films to decrease the cross plane thermal conductivity, increase the cross plane Seebeck coefficient and cross plane electrical conductivity. To characterize the thermoelectric generator devices before and after MeV Si ions bombardments at the different fluences we have measured the cross-plane Seebeck coefficient, the cross-plane electrical conductivity, and the cross-plane thermal conductivity, Raman spectra to get some information about the sample structure and bond structures among the used elements in the superlattice thin film systems.     

Application of an Ion Beam Technique for the Design of Visible Light-Sensitive, Highly Efficient and Highly Selective Photocatalysts: Ion-Implantation and Ionized Cluster Beam Methods

As a new concept for the design of effective photocatalysts, an ion beam technology using accelerated metal ions, a metal ion implantation and an ionized cluster beam (ICB) method, have been applied to design unique photocatalysts. The metal ion implantation of TiO₂ and Ti-containing zeolites with highly accelerated metal ions (V⁺, Cr⁺, etc.) is useful in designing photocatalysts that can operate efficiently under visible light irradiation. Also, an ICB method with a low acceleration energy is useful in preparing transparent TiO₂ thin films on various types of substrates for the efficient photocatalytic degradation of pollutants diluted in water and air. The combination of the ICB method and metal ion implantation can develop the TiO₂ thin films that are able to operate not only under UV light but also under visible light irradiation.     

Electron irradiation of polyurethane using UV spectroscopy,GPC and swelling analyses

Investigation has been performed on thermoplastic and aromatic polyetherurethane (ETPU) irradiated by an electron beam of 200 keV energy. The changes in chemical structure resulting from the irradiation and particularly the development of polyene sequences were studied using UV spectroscopy. Moreover, structural transformations have been characterized by GPC for soluble samples and by the swelling technique for insoluble samples. An increase in crosslinking rate of the polymer is observed and analyzed. The results of the chemical and structural modifications show that the development of polyene sequences and the crosslinking of the ETPU reached a maximum at about 200 μm, and that these effects increased with the fluence. Moreover, it also appeared that the increase in temperature has induced an increase in crosslinking, but the scission process has prevailed to the crosslinking with the increase in electron flux.     

Effects of radiation and storage time on conductive NBR/LDPE blends

The electrical conductivity, σ, of conductive acrylonitrile-butadiene rubber (NBR) mixed with different concentrations (1, 3 and 5 phr) of low-density polyethylene (LDPE) is presented. The effect of gamma radiation doses in the range 5 to 50 kGy on the electrical conductivity was determined for all samples. Storage of the unirradiated and irradiated samples for 7 days at 60 or 100 °C has a great influence on the electrical conductivity of these blends. The variation in the conduction mechanisms through these blends on both irradiation and storage is also discussed.     

A wide-angle secondary ion probe for organic ion imaging

A secondary ion source has been developed for an organic ion microprobe capable of imaging samples up to 2 em in diameter. The source uses a focused 5 keY Cs⁺ ion beam which is rastered across the sample surface, and secondary ions from each point on the sample are collected and formed into a low energy beam to be analyzed by a quadrupole mass filter. Dynamic emittance matching is employed to deflect ions from off-axis points on the sample back onto the mass analyzer axis. Rastering and dynamic emittance matching are rapidly controlled by assembly language programs using an IBM/AT (80286) type computer. A low energy ion monitor was used to tune and evaluate the secondary ion source by providing a magnified cross-sectional image of the ion beam at the source exit aperture. A well-focused and centered secondary ion beam was obtained from each point on the sample, indicating that large-scale dynamic emittance matching with high collection efficiency is possible. Mass resolved images of grids and glycerol samples are shown to demonstrate the performance of the integrated secondary ion source mass analyzer and control system.