Luminescence of F-Type Defects and Their Thermal Stability in Sapphire Irradiated by Pulsed Ion Beams

Abstract

We studied the luminescence and the thermal stability of defects formed in α-Al₂O₃ single crystals after pulsed treatment with a beam of C⁺/H⁺ ions with an energy of 300 keV and a pulse duration of ~80 ns. By measuring optical absorption, photoluminescence, and pulsed cathodoluminescence, it is found that this type of exposure leads to intense generation of both single F and F⁺ centers and more complex defects (F₂ aggregate centers or vacancy–impurity complexes) in α-Al₂O₃. The thermal stability of F-type defects formed in α-Al₂O₃ upon exposure to a pulsed ion beam is comparable to the stability of radiation-induced defects in neutron-irradiated samples.