Factor analysis of inelastic electron scattering cross section spectra of iron monosilicide FeSi

The inelastic electron scattering cross-section spectra of FeSi silicide were calculated from the experimental re- flected electron energy loss spectra as the product of the average inelastic mean free path and the differential cross section of the inelastic electron scattering. To inelastic electron scattering cross-section spectra study, factor analysis was used. This method allowed us to quantitatively separate the surface and bulk contributions to the spectra, and de- termine the energy of the bulk plasmon more accurately than it is possible using traditional methods. Inelastic electron scattering cross-section spectra (Kλ-spectra) are the products of the average inelastic mean free path λ and the differential inelastic scattering cross-section K (E0, E0 - E), where E0 and E are the energies of the pri- mary and reflected electrons, respectively. The advantage of inelastic electron scattering cross section spectroscopy is that, unlike the reflected electron energy loss spectra, the Kλ-spectra exclude losses due to multiple excitations, and the intensities are determined in absolute units. These spectra are also more sensitive to changes in the energy of the pri- mary electrons and the angle of emission. Inelastic electron scattering cross-section spectroscopy allows to determine the element composition with much greater accuracy than the traditional method of reflected electron energy loss spec- troscopy. In this work, factor analysis is used to study the inelastic electron scattering cross section spectra of the FeSi sili- cide. This method allowed to solve the actual problem of separating spectra into contributions of a different origin, quantify them and determine the energies of a bulk plasmon more accurately compared with traditional methods. The study of electron energy loss processes by isolating contributions of different origin in the inelastic electron scattering cross section spectra is one of the urgent problems of electron spectroscopy, which can be used to assess the effect of surface excitations in REELS, XPS and AES.