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Damage introduced to graphite by mechanical polishing, argon ion beam polishing,
fracture, and neutron bombardment has been studied in polycrystalline graphites and Highly
Oriented Pyrolytic Graphite (HOPG). Scanning Electron Microscopy and Atomic Force
Microscopy, as well as X-Ray Diffraction and Raman spectroscopy, were employed. The least
disturbed surfaces are observed in pristine HOPG or by fracturing techniques that exposed
pre-existing defects. A decrease of the mean particle size of the abrading medium and the use
of ions and neutrons increased the D band and decreased the pseudo-crystallinity.
Keywords: graphite, ion irradiation, surface preparation |
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