Premium
Auger parameter studies of third‐row chemical elements
Author(s) -
Moretti Giuliano,
Paparazzo Ernesto
Publication year - 2006
Publication title -
surface and interface analysis
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.52
H-Index - 90
eISSN - 1096-9918
pISSN - 0142-2421
DOI - 10.1002/sia.2143
Subject(s) - auger , auger electron spectroscopy , chemistry , valence (chemistry) , atomic physics , valence electron , core electron , chemical shift , auger effect , analytical chemistry (journal) , electron , physics , nuclear physics , organic chemistry , chromatography
The Auger parameter (AP) studies available in the literature are usually based on Auger transitions involving only core‐level electrons. In this paper, besides the usual AP − α* Z = [ BE (2p)] + [ KE (KL 23 L 23 )], ( Z = third‐row chemical elements)—we also considered the AP involving core–valence–valence Auger transitions − γ* Z = [ BE (2p)] + [ KE (L 23 VV)]. The chemical shifts for γ* between Al 0 and Al 2 O 3 and between Si 0 and SiO 2 are more than twice that for α*, whereas the difference in such chemical shifts progressively decreases with increasing Z . While the inelastic mean free path (λ) associated with α* spans the range ∼2.5–4.5 nm, γ* relates to a much more surface‐specific analysis, i.e. 0.5 < λ < 2.5 nm. We discuss the diagnostic potential of γ* and outline its advantages and shortcomings in the surface and interface analysis of materials. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.