Large-scale molecular dynamics simulations of energetic Ni nanocluster impact onto the surface

On the atomic scale, Molecular Dynamics (MD) Simulation of Nano Ni cluster impact on Ni (100) substrate surface have been carried out for energies of E-a = 1-5 eV/atom and total energy of E-T = 195 eV (the total energy of cluster is E-T = nE(a), n is the number of cluster atoms) to understand quantitatively the interaction mechanisms between the cluster atoms and the substrate atoms. The many-body Embedded Atom Method (EAM) was used in this simulation. We investigated the maximum substrate temperature T-max and the time t(max) within which this temperature is reached as a function of cluster sizes and the total energy E-T. The temperature T-max is linearly proportional to total cluster energy. For the constant energy per atom and for the cluster size increase, the correlated collisions rapidly transfers energy to the substrate, and the time t(max) approached a constant value. For constant total energy the temperature T-max and the time t(max) versus different cluster sizes was studied. We showed that the cluster implantation and sputtering atoms from the surface are affected by the cluster size and total kinetic energy of the clusters. Finally time dependence of the number N-dis of disordered atoms in the substrate was observed.