Specific features of the kinetics of the chemical etching of poly(ethyleneterephthalate) films irradiated with xenon ions

The kinetics of the alkaline etching of poly(ethylene terephthalate) films irradiated with xenon ions with the energy of 1 MeV per nucleon is investig ated. It was established that preliminary (prior to etching) film annealing in the air and swelling in water substantially affect the etching kinetics due to various adsorption, desorption, and diffusion processes in latent t racks of ions in the polymer. The tritium tracer method showed that water p enetrating into the latent tracks exerts a plasticizing effect on the destr ucted polymeric material, which contributes to its contraction and provides the involvement of both the polymer surface and some portion of the volume of latent tracks into the etching zone.