Theoretical assessments of major physical processes involved in the depth resolution in sputter profiling

Abstract

Abstract Two of the more important physical processes which militate against high depth resolution capabilities for ion-induced sputter sectioning associated with compositional analysis techniques are surface topography development and recoil atomic mixing. This review describes earlier, simplistic, theoretical modelling of such processes and describes new approaches based upon empirical evidence of the nature and magnitude of these processes. It is shown that, in general, the depth resolution of the sputtering technique will be a complex function of the depth probed and that both “broadenings” and “shifts” in depth evaluation are to be expected.