Energy Threshold of the Atomic and Cluster Sputtering of Some Elements under Bombardment with Cs, Rb, and Na Ions

Abstract

The results obtained using secondary-ion mass spectrometry under the bombardment of Si(111) crystals are analyzed. It is shown that, as bombarding ion masses are increased in the case of the same energy, the relative yield of cluster ions and the threshold cluster sputtering energy increase with increasing number n; n is the number of atoms in the cluster (n = 1–5). The threshold sputtering energies are determined for atoms and clusters. The experimental data on the threshold particle sputtering energies are compared with the data of molecular-dynamics simulation.