Scanning force microscopy of heavy-ion tracks

Abstract

Abstract Polycarbonate, polyimide, and glass samples were irradiated with heavy ions in the 11.4–14.0 MeV/amu energy range at the UNILAC of GSI. After etching and partly coating the specimens with a thin gold layer, ion tracks were studied with scanning force microscopy, including imaging in the lateral-force mode. Results on pore features such as the radius as a function of etching time are presented.