A computational atomistic study of the relaxation of ion-bombarded \emph{c}-Si on experimental time-scales: an application of the kinetic Activation Relaxation Technique

The kinetic activation relaxation technique (kinetic ART) method, an off-lattice, self-learning kinetic Monte Carlo (KMC) algorithm with on-the-fly event search,\footnote{L. K. B\'{e}land, P. Brommer, F. El-Mellouhi, J.-F. Joly and N. Mousseau, Phys. Rev. E \textbf{84}, 046704 (2011).} is used to study the relaxation of \emph{c}-Si after Si$^-$ bombardment at 3 keV. We describe the evolution of the damaged areas at room-temperature and above for periods of the order of seconds, treating long-range elastic deformations exactly. We assess the stability of the nanoscale structures formed by the damage cascade and the mechanisms that govern post-implantation annealing.