Profile size-broadening

Fourier transform method. The method used most widely for the separation of size and distortion in peak profiles from metals and inorganic materials is the Fourier analysis method introduced by Warren and Averbach (21). The peak profile is considered as a convolution of the size-broadening profile fg and the distortion broadening profile fj), so that the resolved and corrected profile f(x) is given by... 

In Equation 4.1, the factor fiF(0) is included, which is the peak profile function, that describes particle size broadening and other sources of peak broadening. The XRD method can be used as well for the measurement of the crystallite size of powders by applying the Scherrer-Williamson-Hall methodology [4,35], In this methodology, the FWHM of a diffraction peak, p, is affected by two types of defects, that is, the dislocations, which are related to the stress of the sample, and the grain size. It is possible to write [35]... 

In addition, diffraction line breadth contains information on lattice strain, lattice defects, and thermal vibrations of the crystal structure. The chief problem to determine crystallite size from line breadth is the determination of /3(20) from the diffraction profile, because broadening can also be caused by the instrument. To correct for the instrumental broadening on the pattern of the sample, it is convenient to run a standard peak from a sample in which the crystallite size is large enough to eliminate all crystallite size broadening. By use of a convolu-... 

Finally, the accurate analyses of the profile parameters and their dependence on the scattering angle 29 can give information about strain and particle sizes in the sample. The main contribution to these effects will appear as Lorentzian broadening. The first term in Eq. (5.8) describes size broadening and the second term corresponds to the strain contribution to the Lorentzian broadening. 

In numerous applications of polymeric materials multilayers of films are used. This practice is found in microelectronic, aeronautical, and biomedical applications to name a few. Developing good adhesion between these layers requires interdiffusion of the molecules at the interfaces between the layers over size scales comparable to the molecular diameter (tens of nm). In addition, these interfaces are buried within the specimen. Aside from this practical aspect, interdififlision over short distances holds the key for critically evaluating current theories of polymer difllision. Theories of polymer interdiffusion predict specific shapes for the concentration profile of segments across the interface as a function of time. Interdiffiision studies on bilayered specimen comprised of a layer of polystyrene (PS) on a layer of perdeuterated (PS) d-PS, can be used as a model system that will capture the fundamental physics of the problem. Initially, the bilayer will have a sharp interface, which upon annealing will broaden with time. 

When applied to the XRD patterns of Fig. 4.5, average diameters of 4.2 and 2.5 nm are found for the catalysts with 2.4 and 1.1 wt% Pd, respectively. X-ray line broadening provides a quick but not always reliable estimate of the particle size. Better procedures to determine particle sizes from X-ray diffraction are based on line-profile analysis with Fourier transform methods. 

The peak profile analysis techniques allow separating the intrinsic and extrinsic causes producing peak broadening and shift. Accurate peak profile analysis requires the instrumental broadening well characterized and, in general, significantly smaller than the one due to sample defects (size and strain). New high quality X-ray sources and... 

In the simplest approach T is the full width of the peak (measured in radians) subtended by the half maximum intensity (FWHM) corrected for the instrumental broadening. The correction for instrumental broadening is very important and can be omitted only if the instrumental broadening is much less than the FWHM of the studied diffraction profile, which is always the case in presence of small nanoclusters. The integral breadth can be used in order to evaluate the crystallite size. In the case of Gaussian peak shape, it is ... 

Information concerning size distribution and strain profile can be obtained from the cosine Fourier coefficients, which describe the symmetric peak broadening. 

It is a known property of Fourier transforms that given a convolution product in the reciprocal space, it becomes a simple product of the Fourier transforms of each term in the real space. Then, as the peak broadening is due to the convolution of size and strains (and instrumental) effects, the Fourier transform A 1) of the peak profile I s) is [36] ... 

The diffraction lines due to the crystalline phases in the samples are modeled using the unit cell symmetry and size, in order to determine the Bragg peak positions 0q. Peak intensities (peak areas) are calculated according to the structure factors Fo (which depend on the unit cell composition, the atomic positions and the thermal factors). Peak shapes are described by some profile functions 0(2fi—2fio) (usually pseudo-Voigt and Pearson VII). Effects due to instrumental aberrations, uniform strain and preferred orientations and anisotropic broadening can be taken into account. 

Consideration of instrumental broadening is a merely technical issue. The instrumental profile Hj (s) must be measured. It is the shape of any peak18 of a single crystal of infinite size and perfection. For application in the field of polymers, many inorganic crystals, e.g., the common standard LaB6, are very good approximations to the ideal case. 

The usual techniques for the determination of particle sizes of catalysts are electron microscopy, chemisorption, XRD line broadening or profile analysis and magnetic measurements. The advantage of using Mossbauer spectroscopy for this purpose is that one simultaneously characterizes the state of the catalyst. As the state of supported iron catalysts depends often on subtleties in the reduction, the simultaneous determination of particle size and degree of reduction as in the studies of Fig. 5.10 is an important advantage of Mossbauer spectroscopy. 

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