Effects of O2+ ions beam irradiation on crystal structure of rare earth sesquioxides

Abstract

We report the results of ion irradiation influence on rare earth sesquioxides structure, which are materials of practical importance as a radiation resistant ceramics in nuclear applications. Y2O3, Gd2O3 and Er2O3 sesquioxides in the pellet form were irradiated by oxygen ions (O2+) beam with the energy of 30 keV and implantation fluence of 5 x 10(20) m (2). Samples are characterized by Grazing Incidence X-ray Diffraction (GIXRD), Raman spectroscopy and atomic force microscopy (AFM). By GIXRD it was found partial transformation from cubic