Computer simulation of cluster bombardment of a lead film on graphene

The problem of removal of a lead film from partially hydrogenated imperfect graphene by bombarding the target with a beam of Xe-13 clusters having energies of 5-30 eV and an incident angle of 0A degrees has been solved using the molecular dynamics method. Graphene is completely cleaned of lead at cluster energies of 10 and 15 eV. At higher beam energies, the lead can percolate through divacancies to the back side of graphene or, by virtue of plastic deformation, adhere to the front side. The separation of lead from the graphene film follows the cluster mechanism. The metal film torn off the graphene and acquired the cluster form has the lowest value of the horizontal mobility of the atoms among all of the systems under consideration and quite low values of vertical mobility. The separation of the lead film from the graphene can also result in a significant decrease in the value of certain components of the metal-film stress tensor and an increase in graphene roughness.