Characterization of ion track morphology formed by swift heavy ion irradiation in silicon oxynitride films

Abstract

Amorphous silicon oxynitride (SiOxNy) possess interesting optical and mechanical properties. Here, we present direct evidence for the formation of ion tracks in 1 µm thick silicon oxynitride of different stoichiometries. The tracks were created by irradiation with 185 MeV Au13+ ions. The samples were studied using spectral reflectometry and Rutherford backscattering spectrometry (RBS), with the track morphology characterised by means of small angle X–ray scattering (SAXS). The radial density of the ion tracks resembles a core–shell structure with a typical radius of ~ 1.8 + 2.4 nm in the case of Si3N4 and 2.3 + 3.2 nm for SiO2.