Annealing studyof self-ion-irradiated gold by proton channeling

The isochronal annealing of self-ion damage in gold, introduced at room temperature, was measured by the channeling-backscattering method. The results are compared with those obtained from transmission-electron microscope (TEM) observations on similar specimens. The temperature for the annealing stage was found to be 250°C, which agrees with the TEM results. The depth distribution of the bombardment damage is obtained from a single-scattering attenuation model of proton dechanneling at 200 keV. The damage profile has a maximum at 950 A which is a factor of 2.5 greater than predicted by amorphous energy-deposition theory. Throughout the observed annealing stage, one finds a regular decrease in defect concentration, with no anomalous changes in the defect profile.