The doorway to XPS enlightenment
Every XPS peak traces back to a specific electronic energy level in an atom. Understanding how these levels are structured — and why they have the energies they do — is the foundation of interpreting any XPS spectrum.
XPS probes core electrons, but valence electrons drive chemistry. Understanding the difference — and the relationship between them — is essential for interpreting XPS spectra correctly.
Binding energy is the foundation of every XPS measurement. Learn what it means physically, how it is measured, and why chemical environment shifts it.
What is the thickogram in XPS analysis? What can it tell me? How do I use it?
What is the instrument transmission function in X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy? What do I need to know?
What are relative sensitivity factors, and how do they affect my XPS analysis? Where do they come from?
What impacts our peak intensities in XPS? Why do we see different peak areas for some elements and orbitals, compared to others?
What are recoil effects in X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and related techniues? How do these affect our data?
What exactly is the photoelectric effect? How does this enable us to use the technique known as X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy?
Learn about analysis of boron by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. How can we analyse boron by XPS? What do we need to know?