Fabrication of multi-step swelling structures on 6H–SiC by using highly-charged Ar beams

A series of experimental studies on ion-beam-induced swelling of silicon carbide (SiC), a promising ultra-hard materials, have shown that the swelling height varies with irradiation parameters, such as ion type, fluence, and beam energy. In order to confirm the feasibility of the swelling effect as a fabrication process for 3D micro-nanostructures, the effect of beam energy on swelling of the SiC substrate and a two-step irradiation method were investigated by using Ar beams in charge states of 1+, 4+, and 7+. The swelling height increases linearly with the fluence of the Ar beam up to n ≈ 5 × 1015/cm2. In addition, the swelling height obtained by using Ar7+ ions is enhanced by about fivefold as compared with that for Ar1+. Multi-step swelling structures were fabricated through a two-step irradiation. A different irradiation pattern was used in each step, and the additivity of swelling height was confirmed. To understand the swelling behavior, the effect of irradiation is characterized by SRIM-2013 and the Rutherford backscattering-channeling technique.