L‐series X‐ray emission spectra of 3d‐metal compounds with various excitation conditions

L‐series emissions of manganese, iron, and zinc oxides were studied using electron beam excitation and highly brilliant synchrotron radiation excitation. We showed that manganese and iron oxides show different Lβ/Lα intensity ratio because of their oxidation states and excitation electron voltages. On the other hand, we could not get any L‐series emissions from those bulk samples when excited by normal incident high‐energy monochromatic X‐rays, while samples of thin films and samples excited by grazing incident monochromatic X‐rays showed clear emissions. It is suggested that the difference of Lβ/Lα intensity ratio due to the oxidized states mainly concerns with the Coster–Kronig transition ratio of the samples, while self‐absorption effects should also deeply contribute the ratio, considering the experimental results. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.