Creation of Lunar and Hermean analogue mineral powder samples for solar wind irradiation experiments and mid-infrared spectra analysis

The surfaces of airless planetary bodies are subject to a barrage charged particles, photons, and meteoroids. This high-energy space environment alters the creates tenuous atmosphere ejected particles surrounding celestial bodies. Experiments with well characterized analogue materials under controlled laboratory conditions needed interpret observations these atmospheres improve composition models such study presents methods create analyze mineral powder pellets for ion irradiation experiments relevant rocky including Moon Mercury. These include pyroxenes diopside enstatite, plagioclase labradorite non-analogue pyroxenoid wollastonite. First diopside, enstatite wollastonite were performed UHV 4 keV He+ at fluences several 1021 ions m?2 (~100 ~1000 years Mercury Moon, respectively). pellet's thermal IR reflectance properties compared before after showing monotonously shifting spectral features between 7 ? 14 ?m towards higher wavelengths. For all irradiated pellets, Reststrahlen bands shifted by ~0.03 ?m. Surface abrasion was found remove sputter effect, which is restricted top few tens nm surface. Additionally, in quartz crystal microbalance catcher setup, where mass sputtered from monitored. proves, that presented sample preparation method allows induced sputtering surface alteration on planets conditions.