THE PHOTON EXCITATION OF SOFT-X-RAY EMISSION-SPECTRA

The photon excitation of soft X-ray emission spectra using monochromatized radiation from a synchrotron light source provides important advantages compared with electron excitation. The equipment used for such studies on beamline U-10 at the National Synchrotron Light Source (NSLS) is described. With data obtained from this beamline and elsewhere, we discuss and illustrate the elimination of bremsstrahlung, the reduction in damage produced by energy deposition, the elimination of overlapping spectra made possible by selective excitation of particular core levels, and the interactions between excitation and emission processes observed using photon excitation near threshold. © 1990.