ABSTRACT
Secondary ion mass spectroscopy (SIMS) is primarily a technique for depth profiling. It differs from all other methods in the respect that in-depth penetration and the formation of a useful signal are accomplished in a single easily controllable process. Auger electron spectroscopy combined with ion sputtering may be considered as a rival method, but that technique is in many respects inferior to SIMS. A lot of works deal with SIMS potentialities and practical applications for in-depth analysis. In-depth analysis of high accuracy is possible for layers and films whose thickness does not exceed several hundred nanometres. Otherwise the time of measurement becomes too long and the effect of crater walls is significant. Local in-depth analysis for a small depth can be performed by collimating the primary beam in such a way that a probe of uniform current density is obtained.
