Absence of plasmon-gain satellites in the Auger spectrum of silicon

Weak satellite structure in the Si Auger electron spectrum at 107 eV has been attributed to a plasmon-energy-gain mechanism by several authors. Detailed measurements of this transition both for Si and for SiC have been made which demonstrate that the plasmon-gain interpretation is incorrect. The satellite transition is observed at 15 ± 1 eV above the main L_2,3VV transition in both materials while the plasmon energy increases from 17 eV in Si to 22 eV in SiC. Experimental evidence is presented, in favor of multiple ionization of the initial state as the correct interpretation.