Citation
Manzano-Santamaría, J. and Olivares, J. and Rivera de Mena, Antonio and Peña Rodríguez, Ovidio Y. and Agullo Lopez, Fernando
(2012).
Kinetics of color center formation in silica irradiated with swift heavy ions: Thresholding and formation efficiency.
"Applied Physics Letters", v. 101
(n. 15);
p. 154103.
ISSN 1077-3118.
https://doi.org/10.1063/1.4757886.
Abstract
We have determined the cross-section σ for color center generation under single Br ion impacts on amorphous SiO2. The evolution of the cross-sections, σ(E) and σ(Se), show an initial flat stage that we associate to atomic collision mechanisms. Above a certain threshold value (Se > 2 keV/nm), roughly coinciding with that reported for the onset of macroscopic disorder (compaction), σ shows a marked increase due to electronic processes. In this regime, a energetic cost of around 7.5 keV is necessary to create a non bridging oxygen hole center-E′ (NBOHC/E′) pair, whatever the input energy. The data appear consistent with a non-radiative decay of self-trapped excitons.