Abstract
Ion beam analysis (IBA) has been used as a powerful tool for studying materials for many years. Depending on the specific experimental design, IBA techniques can provide a non-destructive means of analysing samples to obtain such information as the elements or isotopes present and diffusion or depth profiles. Ion beam analysis has the ability to keep up with the rapid progress in new materials both as technology improves and as scientists have the creativity to develop existing and new techniques. Many different types of IBA exist. The experiments reported in this thesis were carried out using backscattering of the beam ions, ion induced X-ray emission, and ion induced nuclear reactions. The two experimental projects involved the use of modem cadmium-telluride detectors, including a unique array of CdZnTe detectors. The subsidiary project investigated using nuclear reaction measurements to study moisture diffusing into epoxy resin bonded with aluminium. Current standard techniques cannot measure diffusion profiles directly, resulting predictions rely on assumptions as to the particular mode of moisture migration. I have shown that the ion beam analysis technique can be applied to directly study moisture diffusion profiles parallel and perpendicular to the interfacial region whilst the bond remains intact. Further use of the technique would be of importance in studying the effect of moisture on bond integrity in automotive and aerospace industries - this would result in better predictions of the longevity of adhesive joints. For the main experiment, novel ion beam methods were developed to characterise, for the first time non-destructively, gold flecks dispersed within low density foam cylinders. The techniques allow the measurement of both the mass of gold in the cylinders and the average size of the individual gold flecks. Several different problems not previously encountered in ion beam analyses have been addressed and understood.