Time of flight spectra of electrons emitted from graphite after positron annihilation

Abstract

Low energy (~2 eV) positrons were deposited onto the surface of highly oriented pyrolytic graphite (HOPG) using a positron beam equipped with a time of flight (TOF) spectrometer. The energy of the electrons emitted as a result of various secondary processes due to positron annihilation was measured using the University of Texas at Arlington’s (UTA) TOF spectrometer. The positron annihilation-induced electron spectra show the presence of a carbon KLL Auger peak at ~263 eV. The use of a very low energy beam allowed us to observe a new feature not previously seen: a broad peak which reached to a maximum intensity at ~4 eV and extended up to a maximum energy of ~15 eV. The low energy nature of the peak was confirmed by the finding that the peak was eliminated when a tube in front of the sample was biased at -15 V. The determination that the electrons in the peak are leaving the surface with energies up to 7 times the incoming positron energy indicates that the electrons under the broad peak were emitted as a result of a positron annihilation related process.