Ion irradiation and implantation is an extremely useful procedure for the synthesis and modification of materials at the micro and nano level. It is a process out of thermodynamic equilibrium in which energy transfer favors nanostructuring and the incorporation of external atoms in a matrix, beyond the solubility limit. At IFUNAM, research is being carried out on the ion-solid interaction by incidence of ions at energies of the order of MeV, focusing on the creation of materials and nanostructures with specific properties and applications, for Example: (i) Synthesis of metallic nanoparticles with linear and non-linear optical responses. (ii) Creation of active light guides. (iii) Formation of ordered metallic nanostructures with plasmonic response, for the development of biological sensors. (iv) Controlled modification of the shape and induction of selective orientations in nanoparticles embedded in solids. (v) Modification in the morphology of surfaces for the formation of nanostructures and specific texturizations and the creation of functionalized substrates. (vi) Deformation of colloidal nanospheres for their lithographic use in the formation of ordered arrangements on surfaces.
In a similar way, the interaction of electron beams with the atoms of various materials is studied in an electron microscope. Electrons can have enough energy to break bonds and displace electrons and atoms from materials within their crystalline array, producing ionization phenomena and defects. It can also raise the local temperature sufficiently, producing phase transitions. These structural modifications are studied in situ within the electron microscope, which allows a detailed analysis of the modifications that occur. At IFUNAM, experiments of this type are carried out in the transmission electron microscope to understand and modify the structural properties of materials.
