Removing roughness on metal surface by irradiation of intense short-pulsed ion beams

Summary form only given. Surface modification of metals with an intense pulsed ion beam (IPIB) was studied experimentally. When the temperature rise of metal surfaces by IPIB irradiation exceeds their boiling point, it is found that machining roughness on surfaces is removed. The experiments were performed with the pulsed power generator "HARIMA-II" (400 kV, 3 /spl Omega/, 50 ns) at Himeji Institute of Technology. The IPIB was produced with the inverse pinch ion diode (IPD) which consists of a ring anode of 50 mm in diameters and an annular cathode projected from a circular plate of 16 mm in diameter. A Teflon plate in thickness of 2 mm was attached to the anode surface as an ion source. The anode-cathode gap length was 3 mm. A diode chamber is exhausted by oil diffusion pump to <1/spl times/10/sup -3/ Pa. The maximum diode voltage and pulse width were 180 kV and 25 ns (FWHM), respectively. The typical diameter and current density of the ion beams were 30 mm (FWHM) and 180 A/cm/sup 2/ at the focal point of 120 mm behind the anode, respectively. The main components of the ion beam were carbon and fluorine ions. The IPIB was irradiated to metal plates (Al, Cu and Ti) which were placed at the focal point. Machining roughness on Ti surface was removed after IPIB irradiation, while roughness on Al and Cu plates was not removed.