Thermoluminescence of Ion-Implanted SiO₁

Abstract

Thermoluminescence (TL) has been measured from room temperature to 500°C for ion-implanted fused silica glasses, crystalline synthetic quartz and rf-sputtered SiO₂ films. Measurements of the TL spectra for widely varying values of electronic and atomic energy depositions, along with the known impurity concentrations of the various systems, has allowed some of the TL features to be identified. In particular, 1) a TL peak at 150°C in fused silica has been identified with defects formed by structural modification, 2) a 330° C peak in crystalline quartz and relatively impure fused silica is tentatively assigned to a center involving Al, 3) a 100°C peak, common to all silicas may be related to oxygen vacancies, and 4) an ~200°C peak may be the analog of the 245 nm impurity absorption band seen in some fused silica glasses.

This work was supported by the United States Energy Research and Development Administration (ERDA) under Contract E (29-1) 789.