Abstract:
Annealing of color centers was studied in lithium fluoride crystals, irradiated with 23-MeV nitrogen
and 28-MeV oxygen ions. Basing on the optical absorption spectroscopy and reaction-rate modelling,
a new interpretation of the annealing kinetics at the practically important temperatures below 500 K is
suggested. Proposed model explains simultaneous decrease of the F and F2/F3
+ peaks as a result of
migration of the F centers and formation of larger aggregates, and does not include additional
assumptions about impurities and cation vacancies. It specifies the migration energy of the F centers in
the ground state to be about 1.3 eV, that corresponds to earlier studies.
