Effect of gas cluster species on crater formation for fused silica

The interactions of the Ne, Ar, and Kr clusters with the fused silica surface were investigated by molecular dynamics simulations. The impacts of noble gas clusters with kinetic energies ranging from 25 to 110 eV per atom were compared. The characteristics of the formed craters were examined at cluster incidence angles of 0 degrees and 60 degrees. It was found that the crater diameter is almost the same for different gas species at normal incidence. However, at oblique incidence, the depths of craters formed by the Ne and Kr clusters differ insignificantly. Additionally, it has been shown that the ratio of crater length to depth is a function of the energy per cluster atom and can be the same for clusters with different energies and sizes. The dependencies of the crater volume on the scaled cluster energy and energy per unit area were studied. The cratering efficiency of different gas species was estimated, and the relationship between crater volume and sputtering yield was revealed. Moreover, it was shown that the ratio of sputtered volume to crater volume is power law related to the ratio of the sputtered atoms energy to the initial kinetic energy of clusters.