Direct evidence for projectile charge-state dependent crater formation due to fast ions

We report on craters formed by individual 3 MeV/u Au (q(ini)+) ions of selected incident charge states q_(ini) penetrating thin layers of poly(methyl methacrylate). Holes and raised regions are formed around the region of the impact, with sizes that depend strongly and differently on q_(ini). Variation of q_(ini) of the film thickness and of the angle of incidence allows us to extract information about the depth of origin contributing to different crater features.