Introductory guide to the application of XPS to epitaxial films and heterostructures

Journal Article · Thu Oct 01 00:00:00 EDT 2020 · Journal of Vacuum Science and Technology A

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1116/6.0000465· OSTI ID:1706673

Chambers, Scott A. ^[1]; Wang, Le ^[1]; Baer, Donald R. ^[2]

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1. Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States)
2. Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States). Environmental Molecular Sciences Lab. (EMSL)

XPS is an important characterization method for epitaxial films and heterostructures. Although standard approaches to XPS data collection and analysis provide useful information such as average composition and the presence of contaminants, more in-depth analysis provides information about film structure, surface termination, built-in electric potentials and band offsets. The high degree of structural order in these materials enables such information to be extracted from spectral data but also adds complications to the analysis. This guide highlights three topics of importance in this field: i) the impacts of crystallinity on XPS signals and quantification, ii) the unexpected spectral line shapes that can occur in unusual or novel materials, and, iii) the ability of XPS to yield information about built-in potentials and band offsets. Concepts are demonstrated using complex oxide heterostructures. Although the topics are highly relevant to epitaxial films and heterostructures, they also apply to signal crystals of complex materials

• Research Organization: Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States)
• Sponsoring Organization: USDOE
• Grant/Contract Number: AC05-76RL01830
• OSTI ID: 1706673
• Report Number(s): PNNL-SA-154604
• Journal Information: Journal of Vacuum Science and Technology A, Journal Name: Journal of Vacuum Science and Technology A Journal Issue: 6 Vol. 38; ISSN 0734-2101
• Publisher: American Vacuum Society / AIP
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

97 MATHEMATICS AND COMPUTING