ABSTRACT
Mass-spectrometric investigation of sputtering products at ion bombardment is a direct way to determine elemental and isotopic composition of any solid. Differences in ionization coefficients for different elements as well as the variation of these coefficients in the case when elements form alloys, do not form an inseparable obstacle for the development of analytical methods, since calibration curves may always be plotted beforehand using alloys of a known composition as references. Quantitative constitutional measurements by secondary ion mass spectroscopy (SIMS) are rendered difficult by a large variation in secondary ion emission coefficients for different elements. Also, the absolute values of these coefficients depend strongly on the experimental conditions, this being the cause of the wide spread in the data available from the literature. Surface and bulk analysis of solids by means of SIMS may become troublesome or impossible if insulating samples are to be examined.
