Polymers under Protons and Heavy Ions as Ionizing Radiations

Dear Colleagues,

The potential of polymers to detect etched tracks was demonstrated as early as in the 1960s, notably in the field of space radiation, but it is only in the last decade that new potentials have been identified from comprehensive studies of the modified chemical structure of latent ion-track in different polymers, and especially in poly(allyl diglycol carbonate), PADC, which is known as the most sensitive etched track detector, usually called CR-39.

As the ion tracks around protons or heavy ions trajectories are enlarged to etch pits by chemical etching treatments for optical microscope observation, each observed etch pit corresponds to a swift ion that degrades the polymeric material. The size and the geometry of each etch pit therefore contains in-depth information about each swift-ion, such as its kind, its direction, and its kinetic energy.

Thanks to the increase in computational capabilities, experimental results have recently been simulated using the Monte Carlo method for secondary electrons around the ion track with a cut-off energy of 7.4 eV. Combining the quantitative analysis of latent tracks in PADC and the statistical simulation, new physical criterions have been proposed to describe the detection threshold of PADC, such as the radial electron fluence around ion tracks. Consequently, it is now possible to define the relation between the modified molecular structure along ion track in polymers and the track structure of secondary electrons around ion trajectories. This research opens a new door in ion track studies and in physics, as well as leading to a renewal of interest for several kinds of polymers, such as polyimides, poly(ethylene terephthalate), bisphenol A polycarbonate, and PADC, which have been etched for laser-driven ion acceleration, to discriminate ions from laser plasma, for instance. The different detection thresholds of these polymeric materials mean that it is easier to identify species. In turn, dry-etching by UV light has shown that heavy ion track in poly(ethylene terephthalate) has produced unexpected sub-nano scale modifications. Sub-nano nuclear track pores in poly(ethylene terephthalate) are also at the dawn of a new era, as research on them was not technically possible a few decades ago, offering potential for membrane applications such as ion separation in aquatic solution.

To celebrate a trajectory that started in the 1960s and that has been recently boosted by new technical capabilities and computing power, I would like to invite you to submit your research works on latent tracks in polymers in fundamentals and applications. This issue is meant to provide a common platform that reflects on recent progresses and the future of this innovative field.

Prof. Dr. Tomoya Yamauchi
Dr. Masato Kanasaki
Guest Editors

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• Ion tracks of protons and heavy ions in polymers
• Polymeric etched track detectors
• Particle identification by chemical etching
• Applications of ion tracks in polymers as membrane
• Modified structure of ion tracks in polymers
• Formation mechanism of ion tracks in polymer
• Simulations of secondary electron around ion tracks
• Criterion of etched track formation in polymers