APPLICATION OF ION IMPLANTATION TO SAPPHIRE COLOURATION BY MEVVA SOURCE

Colourless synthetic sapphires are implanted with various metal ions (Fe, Co, Cr, Ti, Nd) by use of MEVVA ion source. Colouration of metal-dopped sapphires is investigated by varying the conditions of ion implantation and thermal annealing. The phases of metal-dopped layers in synthetic sapphires are determined by X-ray diffractometer (XRD). Rutherford Backscattering Spectroscopy (RBS) has been used to analyze the distribution of metal-dopped layers. The absorption of metal-dopped sapphires in visible range is studied by means of UV-VIS spectrometer.