Atomistic simulations of MeV ion irradiation of silica

We used molecular dynamics simulations to study 2.3MeV Au ion irradiation of silica. In this energy regime, the energy loss of the ion is divided almost equally between electronic and nuclear energy loss. The inelastic thermal spike model was used to model the electron–phonon interactions due to the high electronic energy loss. Binary collision approximation calculations provided input for the recoil energies due to MeV ions. We performed simulations of the damage due to the separate damage mechanisms as well as together, and found that the inelastic thermal spike is needed to accurately simulate the irradiation damage from MeV ions.