FORMALISM AND PARAMETERS FOR QUANTITATIVE SURFACE-ANALYSIS BY AUGER-ELECTRON SPECTROSCOPY AND X-RAY PHOTOELECTRON-SPECTROSCOPY

It has been realized during the last 5 years that quantitative surface analyses by Auger electron spectroscopy (AES) and x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) can be greatly complicated by the effects of elastic electron scattering. These effects had previously been largely ignored. We review here the effects of elastic scattering in the formalism of quantitative surface analysis by AES and XPS and discuss the various definitions of terms (inelastic mean free path, attenuation length and escape depth) that have been used to describe inelastic scattering and the surface sensitivities of various electron spectroscopies. We show how a realistic theoretical model of electron transport that includes elastic electron scattering can be related, for some analytical situations, to the common simple formalism of AES and XPS in which elastic scattering is neglected. We consider specifically measurements of overlayer thickness, determination of surface composition for a homogeneous surface region and estimation of the average depth of analysis and we indicate which parameter describing inelastic scattering can be utilized in the simple formalism for these applications. Information is given on sources of data for the inelastic mean free path and the attenuation length. Finally, we point out that the definitions of some terms are undergoing revision as a result of recent scientific developments and to avoid inconsistencies with established usage in other fields.