Characterization of the Surface of Silver Ion-Implanted Silicon by Optical Reflectance

The optical reflection of the surface of silicon implanted with Ag+ ions at low energy of 30 keV in a wide dosage range of 5.0·1014–1.5·1017 ion/cm2 was studied in parallel with electron microscopy observation of the samples. It was found that with increasing ion dose of irradiation, the reflection intensity in the UV range of the Si spectrum decreases monotonically due to amorphization and macrostructuring of Si near-surface layer. In the long-wavelength region of the reflection spectra, a selective band with a maximum near 830 nm is recorded due to the plasmon resonance of ion-synthesized Ag nanoparticles.