Damage induced in semiconductors by swift heavy ion irradiation

The behaviour of semiconductors under swift heavy ion irradiation is different from that of metals or insulators: no spectacular effect induced by the inelastic energy loss has been reported in these materials. We present here a review of irradiation effects in the usual semiconductors (silicon, germanium and gallium arsenide). The damage is investigated by means of electrical measurements. The usual mechanisms of point defect creation can account for the experimental results. Besides, some results obtained on the wide gap semiconductor silicon carbide are reported. Concerning the irradiation effects induced by heavy ions in particle detectors, based on silicon substrate, we show that the deterioration of the detector performances can be explained from the knowledge of the substrate properties which are strongly perturbed after high doses of irradiation. Finally, some future ways of investigation are proposed. The silicon substrate is a good example to compare the irradiation effects with different particles such as electrons, neutrons and heavy ions. It is then necessary to use parameters which account for the local energy deposition, in order to describe the damage in the material (C) 1999 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.