Energy dissipation in dielectrics after swift heavy-ion impact: A hybrid model

Abstract

The energy dissipation after irradiation of dielectrics with swift heavy ions is studied applying a combination of the Monte Carlo (MC) method and the two-temperature model (TTM). Within the MC calculation the transient dynamics of the electrons in the excited dielectric is described: the primary excitation and relaxation of the target electrons as well as the creation of secondary electrons. From the MC data, it was observed that the electron system can be considered as thermalized after a time of t∼100 fs after the ion impact. Then the TTM is applied to calculate the spatial and temporal evolution of the electron and lattice temperature via the electron-phonon coupling using the MC data as initial conditions. Additionally, this MC-TTM combination allows to compute material parameters of strongly excited matter. © 2011 American Physical Society.