“…This occurs despite the rate of point defect generation being substantially higher in mode (B). The observed effect can be accounted for by the larger distance, in mode (C), of the maximum defect generation zone from the surface, which is an effective drain for mobile point defects (R p >> h) with a real effective diffusion length of $100 nm [25]. The results confirm the predominantly diffusion mechanism of metal penetration into the semiconductor, because in the case of the implantation mechanism, the maximum values of penetration into SiC of Ni atoms with an average energy of $100 eV, gained from incident protons, would have been observed in mode (B) [25].…”