Abstract:
A depth-resolved Raman spectroscopy technique was used to study the residual stress
profiles in polycrystalline silicon nitride that was irradiated with Xe (167 MeV, 1 × 1011 cm−2 ÷
4.87 × 1013 cm−2
) and Bi (710 MeV, 1 × 1011 cm−2 ÷ 1 × 1013 cm−2
) ions. It was shown that both
the compressive and tensile stress fields were formed in the irradiated specimen, separated by a
buffer zone that was located at a depth that coincided with the thickness of layer, amorphized due
to multiple overlapping track regions. The compressive stresses were registered in a subsurface
region, while at a greater depth, the tensile stresses were recorded and their levels reached the
maximum value at the end of ion range. The size of the amorphous layer was evaluated from the
dose dependence of the full width at half maximum (FWHM) (FWHM of the dominant 204 cm−1
line in the Raman spectra and scanning electron microscopy
