Early stage in low energy ion-induced damage on InP(110) surface

The change in the short-range order created by ion milling in the near surface region of InP single crystals was investigated by primary beam diffraction modulated electron emission (PDMEE). The very early stage of the damage creation by low energy (0.6-1 keV) Ar ions in normal and oblique incidence was studied. A simple model based on the weighted combination of perfectly crystalline and completely amorphous regions was used to model the experimental results. Evidence of a subsurface nucleation of the amorphization process was found. We also found that the total sputtering yield is markedly dependent on the ion dose, being on the undamaged surface much larger than its steady state value. Low energy electron diffraction (LEED) measurements were also performed to correlate long-range and short-range order removal by ion bombardment. Finally, the ion damage on the GaAs and InP surfaces was comparatively discussed. (C) 1997 Elsevier Science B.V.