Chemical composition and local atomic structure of ultrathin surface layers after implantation of argon and oxygen ions

Implantation of argon and oxygen ions into the surface of iron in a pulse-periodic mode has been carried out. The chemical compound of ion-modified layers of iron has been studied by energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX), the local atomic structure of the surface has been studied by XAFS (X-ray Absorption Fine Structure) and spectroscopy of electron energy loss fine structures (EELFS). It is shown that irradiation by ions in the oxygen-argon sequence leads to more significant changes in both the chemical state of iron and the local atomic structure of a thin surface layer than irradiated by an argon ion alone.