Reference Module in Materials Science and Materials Engineering || Photoelectron Diffraction

摘要： Surface structural information can be derived from a great variety of methods, but most quantitative data are based on elastic scattering of X-rays, electrons, or ions by the near-surface atoms. While the best-known methods based on electron (and X-ray) scattering are conventional diffraction methods, reliant on long-range order, the technique of photoelectron diffraction is a local scattering technique that thus provides local structural information not dependent on long-range periodicity. In this short article the physical principles of photoelectron diffraction are described, highlighting at least two fundamentally distinct versions of the technique. The main areas of utilization of the method are illustrated.