Inelastic energy losses of low-energy ions scattered on atoms in gas and on the solid surface

In the present work, the inelastic energy losses of low-energy (0.25-3.0 keV) Ar+ ions scattered on Pd and Ag atoms in gas and solid phases have been investigated experimentally and by computer simulation. It is determined that measured inelastic energy losses in both cases increase with increasing initial energy E-0 and in the case of Pd they are larger for a solid target. In the case of Ag, on the contrary, inelastic energy losses in the gas phase are somewhat larger than in the solid phase. The inelastic energy losses of Ar+ ions scattered on the surface of Ta, Pt and Pb polycrystals are also measured. The discrepancy between experimental data and computation results of inelastic energy losses of ions scattered on the solid targets is established. It is shown that influence of neighboring atoms and multiple collisions in the case of the solid phase unlike the gas phase leads to a number of peculiarities. caused by influence of trajectory effects on the value of inelastic energy losses. (C) 2000 published by Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.