XPS studies of ion bombardment damage of iron—sulfur compounds

Chemical reduction on the surface of iron—sulfur compounds due to ion bombardment has been studied by photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS or ESCA). In addition to the “chemical” nature of surface reduction due to excitations and interactions of valence electrons, radiation-induced changes may also involve such factors as ion—surface chemical interactions and the volatilities of the components. Specifically, the data suggest that after ion bombardment, the reduced metallic iron co-exists with the relatively non-volatile elemental sulfur on the surface, in contrast to the loss of the volatile anion components from halogen and oxygen compounds.