Impurity Profiles : Range and Depth Distribution
There are two basic mechanisms by which energetic ions are stopped in a substrate. Ions interact with electrons and nuclei of substrate atoms and lose energy during these collisions. The range (R) is the total distance traveled by an ion before resting. Please note that the path is not a straight line. The Nuclear collisions transfer energy away from ion and the coulombic interaction with electrons transfer energy to electrons.
If Sn (E) is energy loss per unit length due to nuclear stopping and Se (E) is energy loss per unit length due to electronic stopping, the total rate of energy loss () is the sum of the two losses:
