Structural changes induced by low-energy electron irradiation in GaSb

Structural changes in GaSb (001) thin films upon low-energy electron (125 keV) irradiation have been studied by in situ transmission electron microscopy. No structural changes were observed for irradiation at room temperature. However, in a sample irradiated at 473 K domains of {110} variant, rotated 90° from each other, were formed in the matrix. The average diameter of the domains was approximately 18 nm in the sample irradiated to a fluence of 4.8 × 1024 electrons/m2. It is considered that the domains are pseudo-{110} planes in the matrix formed by electron-irradiation-induced Shockley partial dislocations.