Sensitivity of ion-induced sputtering to the radial distribution of energy transfers: A molecular dynamics study

Abstract : Using different models for the deposition of energy on the lattice and a classical molecular dynamics approach to the subsequent transport, we evaluate how the details of the energy deposition model influence sputtering yield from a Lennard-Jones target irradiated with a MeV/u ion beam. Two energy deposition models are considered: a uniform, instantaneous deposition into a cylinder of fixed radius around the projectile ion track, used in earlier molecular dynamics and fluid dynamics simulations of sputtering yields; and an energy deposition distributed in time and space based on the formalism developed in the thermal spike model. The dependence of the sputtering yield on the total energy deposited on the target atoms is very sensitive to the energy deposition model. To clarify the origin of this strong dependence, we explore the role of the radial expansion of the electronic system prior to the transfer of its energy to the lattice. The results imply that observables such as the sputtering yield may be used as signatures of the fast electron-lattice energy transfer in the electronic energy-loss regime, and indicate the need for more experimental and theoretical investigations of these processes.