Low energy implantation of nitrogen ions by extended beam with a ballistic focusing in a stainless steel

The results of experiments on low-energy nitrogen ions implantation in stainless steel AISI 321 are presented. The treatment was carried out with a pulsed beam of nitrogen ions obtained using a ballistic system of ion focusing. The source of ions was nitrogen plasma of a non-independent gas arc discharge with a heated cathode. It was shown that the specimen surface is subjected to ion etching, which leads to the formation of a well, whose profile depends on the ionic exposure parameters. In addition, when treating specimen in such a system, the surface hardness increases up to 4 times. The increase in hardness occurs due to the formation of a modified layer in the surface, with a thickness of up to 50 microns, containing iron and chromium nitrides.