Abstract :
The structure and surface modifications induced in ion irradiated AZ-1350 J photoresist films as function of energy, fluence
and the amount of electronic and nuclear deposited energy density are investigated in detail. The films have been irradiated with
380 keV Heþ, 4 MeV I2þ and 800 keV Xe2þ ions, in a fluence range from 1013 to 1016 cm 2. At these energies, the ranges of the
ions are larger than the thickness of the films and the transferred energy to the films extends from nearly pure electronic (for Heþ)
to predominantly nuclear stopping power (for Xe2þ). The structural, chemical and mechanical properties of the samples were
investigated through the techniques of nuclear reaction analysis, elastic recoil detection analysis, Fourier transform infrared
spectroscopy (FTIR), Raman spectroscopy and nanoindentation. When the electronic stopping prevails, as for 380 keV Heþ
irradiation at low and intermediate fluences, the deposited electronic energy density is the main cause for the observed increase
of hardness (H), Young modulus (E) and gel fraction through the cross-linking process, preserving most of the chemical
characteristics of the original material. When nuclear stopping is large (Xe and I irradiations) the cross-linking process is only
present at very low fluences. At intermediate and higher fluences the transference of nuclear energy density induces a large loss
of oxygen and hydrogen and the photoresist is progressively transformed into an amorphous carbon layer. At the highest
fluences, the hardness, Young modulus, density and Raman spectra are characteristics of a hydrogenated amorphous carbon
system. We also show that the loss of hydrogen as function of fluence is well explained by the bulk molecular recombination
model, which assumes that the hydrogen leaves the irradiated materials in molecular form.
# 2004 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
