Stopping power measurements of He ions in Si and SiC by time-of-flight spectrometry

A straightforward approach is introduced to determine electronic stopping powers of He ions in Si and SiC over a continuous range of energies. In transmission geometry, the energy loss of He ions in self-supporting stopping foils of Si and SiC is measured using a time-of-flight (TOF) set-up. The energy of individual ions prior to impingement on the foil is determined from its TOF data; the exit energy after the stopping foil is measured using a Si detector, for which every channel has been calibrated using the TOF data without the stopping foil present. The measured stopping powers demonstrate excellent repeatability of this experimental approach and good reliability as compared with previous data from the literature and theoretical predictions.