The energy spectra of uranium atoms sputtered from uranium metal and uranium dioxide targets

• Main Author: Weller, Robert Allen, Jr.
• Format: Others
• Published: 1978
• Online Access: https://thesis.library.caltech.edu/8639/1/Weller_ra_1978.pdf; Weller, Robert Allen, Jr. (1978) The energy spectra of uranium atoms sputtered from uranium metal and uranium dioxide targets. Dissertation (Ph.D.), California Institute of Technology. doi:10.7907/HH37-KG57. https://resolver.caltech.edu/CaltechTHESIS:08222014-130727011 <https://resolver.caltech.edu/CaltechTHESIS:08222014-130727011>

<p>The energy spectra of ²³⁵U atoms sputtered from a 93% enriched ²³⁵U metal foil and a hot pressed ²³⁵U0₂ pellet by an 80 keV ⁴⁰Ar⁺ beam have been measured in the range 1 eV to 1 keV. The measurements were made using a mechanical time-of-flight spectrometer in conjunction with the fission track technique for detecting ²³⁵U. The design and construction of this spectrometer are discussed in detail, and its operation is mathematically analyzed.</p> <p>The results of the experiment are discussed in the context of the random collision cascade model of sputtering. The spectrum obtained by the sputtering of the ²³⁵U metal target was found to be well described by the functional form E(E+E_b)^-2.77, where E_b = 5.4 eV. The ²³⁵U0₂ target produced a spectrum that peaked at a lower energy (~ 2 eV) and decreased somewhat more rapidly for E ≳ 100 eV.</p>