Secondary-emission spectroscopy of solid surfaces /A review/

The paper reviews ways of obtaining information about the elemental composition and electronic state of atoms in surface layers of solids by means of secondary-emission spectroscopy (SES), in which an electron beam interacts with surface atoms to produce the required emission. Physical principles of SES are discussed along with the most important properties of Auger electron spectroscopy, ionization spectroscopy, and slow SES. The energy spectrum of secondary electrons is investigated, and 'integral' SES techniques are noted. The types of spectrometers used in SES are described, synchrotron detection of the fine structure of the secondary-electron spectrum is outlined, and the sensitivity of the basic SES technique is evaluated. Various applications of SES are described in detail, including crystallographic studies, determinations of the chemical purity of metallic surfaces, investigations of the effects of the elemental composition of solid surfaces on their emission properties, and studies of adsorption, oxidation, carbidization, electron-induced desorption, and the kinetics of chemical reactions occurring on solid surfaces.