APPLICATION OF AUGER ELECTRON DEPTH PROFILE ANALYSIS TO THIN FILM INTERDIFFUSION STUDIES.

Because of its good depth resolution, the Auger electron depth profile analysis allows to investigate diffusion phenomena in thin films directly. Complicated calibration procedures, however, are needed to correct for the matrix effects inherent in the Auger method, particularly artefacts due to the sputtering process. In this paper, two types of thin-film systems are presented in order to determine diffusion coefficients from depth profiles: double-layer and periodic multi-layer film structures. Compared to the double-layer films, the multi-layer structure has the advantage of less stringent requirements on depth resolution and allows to detect smaller diffusion effects. Finally, it is shown how grain boundary and bulk diffusion data can be extracted separately from the composition profiles.