Materials Processing by Cluster Ion Beams

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2

History and

Milestones of Cluster

Beam Development

Chapter 1 briey introduced cluster ion beam technology and

equipment. Chapter 2 discusses the history of cluster beam

development, the equipment used, some simulation results,

and the evolution of cluster beam sources.

2.1 Cluster Beam Discovery and Early

Fundamental Progress

The history of cluster beam formation dates back to the end

of the nineteenth century. The historically important achieve-

ment of a cluster beam was associated with formation of

supersonic gas ow through a de Laval nozzle, which had been

invented and patented in 1888 by Swedish inventor Gustaf

de Laval [1]. The de La ...