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Numerical methods for quantification of Auger sputter depth profiles from oxide films on stainless steels
Author(s) -
Olsson ClaesOlof A.
Publication year - 1994
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.740211205
Subject(s) - auger , sputtering , oxide , molybdenum , chromium , annealing (glass) , materials science , analytical chemistry (journal) , metallurgy , sputter deposition , thin film , chemistry , atomic physics , nanotechnology , physics , chromatography
Accurate quantification of Auger sputter depth profiles from oxide films on stainless steels is complicated by two spectral overlaps: O/Cr and Cl/Mo. The chlorine/molybdenum overlap is readily resolved using target factor analysis or any other related method, assuming that there is no molybdenum on the surface. The O/Cr overlap is more difficult to resolve, because the oxide films on stainless steels usually contain large amounts of chromium. It is shown that by using a Cr base spectrum acquired from a sputter‐cleaned surface and an oxide spectrum acquired from Mo oxide, it is possible to resolve the O/Cr overlap for passive films as well as annealing oxides. This gives less noise and higher accuracy, because the operator‐dependent definition of a background at the higher binding energy side of the Cr 529 eV peak is avoided.