HYDROGEN DEPLETION FROM KH2PO4 UNDER HE-BOMBARDMENT( ION)

In view of the ever-growing importance of ion beams in optical materia l processing, this letter reports room-temperature MeV He+ ion irradia tion induced depletion of hydrogen from single crystalline potassium d ihydrogen phosphate (KH2PO4 or KDP) which has wide applications as a n onlinear optical material in optoelectronics technology. Irradiations have been performed using 1.5 MeV He+ ions up to a maximum dose of 2.4 x 10(15) ions/cm(2). Simultaneously, hydrogen profiling has been done by detecting the elastically recoiled H atoms. Bare KDP crystals show a hydrogen loss of 72% at the maximum dose whereas Au coated samples show that 60 Angstrom of Au layer acts as a barrier to considerably re duce hydrogen depletion from KDP. A possible explanation of these phen omena is suggested.