Auger spectroscopy areas analyzed

Spatial resolution is also important in surface analysis and the ability to resolve differences in surface composition on the nanometer scale is important in fracture analysis and many other areas. In this respect, secondary ion mass spectrometry has rather poor resolution, with a sample area generally in excess of 7500 nm. In contrast, techniques such as Auger electron spectroscopy, in which the probe diameter can be finely tuned, allow sample areas of 70 nm or less to be analyzed. 

ISO/TR 19319 Auger electron spectroscopy -determination of lateral resolution, analysis area, and sample area viewed by the analyzer. 

Besides the chemical and radiochemical composition, other properties of the collected materials are also often of interest, such as the natine of the chemical compounds present in these substances. For example, the structure of oxide compounds after isolation from the base material or from the coolant is analyzed by X-ray diffractometry or by Mdssbauer spectrometry. Other microanalytical techniques can be directly applied to oxide layers deposited on surfaces, e. g. of steam generator tube sections. Examples in this field are Auger electron spectroscopy for the determination of element concentrations in micrometer areas and X-ray induced photoelectron spectroscopy for the determination of the chemical states of the individual elements. In order to obtain depth profiles over the thickness of the oxide layer, these techniques often are combined with an argon sputtering process (e. g. Schuster et al., 1988), which removes nanometer fractions from the swface prior to the next analysis step. By y spectrometry of the specimen after each sputtering step, the profile of the radionuclides in the oxide layer can also be determined. 

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