Structural characterization of 8 MeV 11B implanted diamond

Boron is the most effective dopant element in diamond and the capability to introduce high densities of boron makes ion implantation a potential key technology to verify superconductivity in diamond. However, its optimization involves many experimental parameters (i.e. ion energy, fluence, current, annealing times and temperature) and the effectiveness of B implantation to induce superconductivity in diamond is still to be demonstrated. So far, a limited number of works in the range of high (i.e. >5 MeV) B ion energies have been carried, despite the promising perspective offered by deep implantation to fabricate sub-superficial superconductive structures in diamond. To this scope, in the present work, we report on the study of the structural effects of high-energy boron ion irradiation on diamond. Monocrystalline diamond sample was irradiated with an 8 MeV 11B microbeam across multiple square areas, characterized by a different combination of fluences and ion currents. After the implantation, the sample was characterized by Raman spectroscopy and Atomic Force Microscopy to assess its structural modifications and the related surface swelling. Significant variations related to the irradiation condition have been determined.