The formation of nano-particles in silica glass by ion implantation has attracted great attentions because of the applications for visible luminescence and nonlinear optical devices. Ion implantation is a unique technique for producing nano-particles, with the advantages of high controllability of beam position, depth and distribution of projectiles, concentration, high purity and ability to overcome low solubility restrictions.
Optical grade silica glasses were used as the substrates. Ion implantation was performed with a 1.7 MV tandem-type ion accelerator (NEC 5SDH-II pelletron accelerator) of NERIN. The substrates were implanted with 1.0 MeV O+ and 1.8 MeV Cu+. Projected ranges were calculated by SRIM-2000 to be 1.5 μm (for O+) and 1.4 μm (for Cu+). Samples were cooled with liquid nitrogen to reduce the beam heating. The ion current densities of O+ and Cu+ were 6 and 2 μA/cm2, respectively.