Studies on Auger parameter shift of ZnSß-xTex

Abstract

Being defined as the difference in kinetic energy between photoelectron lines and Auger lines, Auger Parameters (AP) are of public interest because of their uniqueness in identifying each material. This study reports the photoelectron-line and Auger-line spectra of a newly explored semi-insulator ZnS_1-xTe_x as a function of Te compositions using X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy (XPS). The Auger Parameter shifts of Zn and Te versus composition change have been determined. Theoretical analysis of these results was carried out using a model based on the relaxation induced by the polarization change of the system due to the existence of the two core holes left in the Auger process. The model reveals that Auger parameter shifts are directly proportional to the extra-atomic relaxation energy. To complement this theoretical model, a set of dielectric constants of ZnS_1-xTe_x alloy corresponding to different compositions was measured to investigate the polarizability of the material. The Auger parameter shifts of Zn and Te in the ZnS_1-xTe_x alloy calculated from the model are in good agreement with that obtained from the XPS studies.

Date of Award	1998
Original language	English
Awarding Institution	The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology