Development of a Facility for Ultrahigh Resolution Depth Profiling using Nuclear Resonances for Materials Research and Education

Rutgers University New Brunswick, New Brunswick NJ

Investigators

Abstract

Rutgers University will build a facility for very-high resolution (<1 nm) depth profiling of light elements in thin films using narrow nuclear resonances. This facility will be installed at an existing accelerator at the Laboratory for Surface Modification (LSM) at Rutgers University and will complement several existing depth profiling techniques there. It will be the first facility of its kind in the US. The experiments will utilize several different extremely narrow (<10 eV) nuclear resonances. By scanning the incident ion energy, the dept from the surface at which the nuclear reactions occur can be varied and information about the depth distribution of the species under study is obtained. Examples of the diverse applications to be pursued include studies of diffusion, segregation and breakdown in ionic conductors, diffusion of sodium in minerals in interplanetary space, novel materials for high performance computer chips, and the long term stability of materials used for storage of nuclear waste. Users outside the LSM, from Rutgers University and elsewhere, can also access this facility, primarily through collaborations. The educational program includes weekend hands-on work in the laboratory by high school students; computer based experiments by undergraduates and summer workshops for senior materials scientists. Research using ion beams is attractive to a wide range of students because of the technical sophistication of these experiments, the "straightforward" (classical, model independent) quantitative data analysis and the close coupling to very real modern technical applications. %%% Rutgers University will construct a novel facility for depth profiling of light elements by ion beam analysis using narrow nuclear resonances. This will be the first facility for nuclear resonance depth profiling in the US. In many scientific applications, one needs to quantify the number of atoms as a function of their distance from the surface. Examples of such diverse applications, described in the proposal, include studies of diffusion, segregation and breakdown in ionic conductors, diffusion of sodium in minerals in interplanetary space, novel materials for high performance computer chips, and the long term stability of materials used for storage of nuclear waste. The facility will utilize several different extremely narrow nuclear resonances. Depth profiling will be accomplished by changing the incident ion energy, so that the depth at which nuclear reactions occur is varied continuously. The educational program includes high school students, undergraduates and also senior materials scientists. Research using ion beams is attractive to a wide range of students. The technical sophistication of these experiments, the "straightforward" (classical, model independent) quantitative data analysis and the close coupling to very real modern technical applications makes it possible to attract promising students to science.