Synthesis of amorphous boron carbide by single and multiple charged boron ions bombardment of fullerene thin films

In this paper, results of structural modification of fullerene thin films by single and multiple charged boron ions (B⁺, B³⁺) are presented. The applied ion energies were in the range of 15-45 keV. The characterization of as-deposited and irradiated specimens has been performed by atomic force microscopy, Raman and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy and UV/vis spectrophotometry. The results of Raman analysis have shown the formation of amorphous layer after irradiation of fullerene thin films. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy has confirmed the formation of new B-C bonds in irradiated films at higher fluences (2 × 10¹⁶ cm⁻²). The morphology of bombarded films has been changed significantly. The optical band gap was found to be reduced from 1.7 to 1.06 eV for irradiated films by B³⁺ ions and 0.7 eV for irradiated films by B⁺ ions.