Low temperature CEMS of Sn-implanted SiO₂

Abstract

Conversion electron Mössbauer spectroscopy (CEMS) at room and low temperature has been used to study thin SiO₂ films implanted with Sn atoms and annealed at 900°C. This work focuses on the determination of the Debye temperature (θ _D) and Debye–Waller factors (f) of the Sn oxidized phases formed in this system. The Sn²⁺ oxidation state is the predominant one, even if a small percentage of the Sn atoms is in the Sn⁴⁺ oxidation state. The real Sn-oxides fractions are calculated by normalizing the resonant areas to the f values, as calculated from the temperature dependence of the related resonant areas within a Debye model. The Sn⁴⁺ oxidation state, possibly related to Sn atoms close to the SiO₂ surface, represents less than 20% of the Sn atoms. For the Sn²⁺ oxidation state, two different electronics configurations a and b, having different Debye temperature and hyperfine parameters are identified. The component a, with a lower θ _D (137 K), is the predominant one and might be related to small (2–3 nm) amorphous SnO _x clusters in the SiO₂ matrix. The component b could be related to substitutional Sn atoms in the SiO₂ network forming a local Sn environment similar to the SnO amorphous compound.