Specimens of silicon carbide (6H-SiC) were irradiated with 5MeV Kr ions (84Kr19+) for three fluences of 5 x 1013, 2 x 1014 and 1 x 1015ions/cm2, and subsequently annealed at room temperature, 500, 700 and 1000C. The strain of the specimens was investigated with high resolution and different defect evolution processes were revealed. An interpretation of the defect evolution and migration was given to explain the strain variation. The mechanical properties of the specimens were studied by using a nano-indentation technique in continuous stiffness measurement mode with a diamond Berkovich indenter. For specimens irradiated with fluences of 5 x 1013 or 2 x 1014ions/cm2, hardness values exceed that of un-implanted SiC. However, hardness sharply degrades for specimens irradiated with the highest fluence of 1 x 1015ions/cm2. The specimens with fluences of 5 x 1013 and 2 x 1014ions/cm2 and subsequently annealed at 700 and 500C, respectively, show the maximum hardness value.

Mechanical Properties and Defect Evolution of Kr-Implanted 6H-SiC. C.L.Xu, C.H.Zhang, Y.Zhang, L.Q.Zhang, Y.T.Yang, X.J.Jia, X.B.Liu, P.Huang, R.S.Wang: Chinese Physics Letters, 2011, 28[10], 106103