  A cluster deposition method was used to produce films of loosely aggregated
nanoclusters (NC) of Fe core-Fe3O4 shell or fully oxidized Fe3O4. Films of
these NC on Si(100) or MgO(100)/Fe3O4(100) were irradiated to 10^16 Si2+/cm2
near room temperature using an ion accelerator. Ion irradiation creates
structural change in the NC film with corresponding chemical and magnetic
changes which depend on the initial oxidation state of the cluster. Films were
characterized using magnetometry (hysteresis, first order reversal curves),
microscopy (transmission electron, helium ion), and x-ray diffraction. In all
cases, the particle sizes increased due to ion irradiation, and when a core of
Fe is present, irradiation reduces the oxide shells to lower valent Fe species.
These results show that ion irradiated behavior of the nanocluster films
depends strongly on the initial nanostructure and chemistry, but in general
saturation magnetization decreases slightly.
