Color centers and structural damage in LiF induced by 150 MeV Kr ions

Color centers and evolution of structure defects were investigated in LiF crystals irradiated at room temperature with 150 MeV 84Kr ions with a beam current of 10nA/cm2 in the fluence range 1011 - 1014 ions/cm2 at the cyclotron accelerator DC-60 (Astana, Kazakhstan). At the fluence of 1011 ions/cm2, SEM imaging revealed mainly formation of etchable ion tracks. Above this fluence, severe structural modifications in the irradiated layer were observed which include the ion-induced formation of dislocations and grains with nano-scale dimensions. The role of fluence in the concentration of electronic color centers and structural modifications is discussed.