Auger emission (pronounced /ˡɔːʒɚ/) is a phenomenon in physics in which the emission of an electron from an atom causes the emission of a second electron. This second ejected electron is called an Auger electron. For information on how to read IPA transcriptions of English words see here. ... The first few hydrogen atom electron orbitals shown as cross-sections with color-coded probability density. ... The electron is a fundamental subatomic particle that carries an electric charge. ... Properties In chemistry and physics, an atom (Greek ἄτομος or átomos meaning indivisible) is the smallest particle of a chemical element that retains its chemical properties. ... Secondary emission is a phenomenon that occurs in electron tubes where electrons impact an electrode with sufficient energy to knock additional electrons from the surface of that electrode. ...

The name Auger electron comes from one of its discoverers, Pierre Victor Auger. The name does not come from the similarly-named device, the auger. Pierre Victor Auger (May 14, 1899 - December 25, 1993) was a French physicist, born in Paris. ... An auger is a device for moving material or liquid by means of a rotating helical flighting. ...

When an electron is removed from a core level of an atom, leaving a vacancy, an electron from a higher energy level may fall into the vacancy, resulting in a release of energy. Although sometimes this energy is released in the form of an emitted photon, the energy can also be transferred to another electron, which is then ejected from the atom. The electron is a fundamental subatomic particle that carries an electric charge. ... Properties In chemistry and physics, an atom (Greek ἄτομος or átomos meaning indivisible) is the smallest particle of a chemical element that retains its chemical properties. ... The word light is defined here as electromagnetic radiation of any wavelength; thus, X-rays, gamma rays, ultraviolet light, microwaves, radio waves, and visible light are all forms of light. ...

Upon ejection the kinetic energy of the Auger electron corresponds to the difference between the energy of the initial electronic transition and the ionization energy for the shell from which the Auger electron was ejected. These energy levels depend on the type of atom and the chemical environment in which the atom was located. Auger electron spectroscopy involves the emission of Auger electrons by bombarding a sample with either X-rays or energetic electrons and measures the intensity of Auger electrons as a function of the Auger electron energy. The resulting spectra can be used to determine the identity of the emitting atoms and some information about their environment. Kinetic energy is the energy by virtue of the motion of an object. ... Auger electron spectroscopy is an analytical technique in surface chemistry and materials science. ... In the NATO phonetic alphabet, X-ray represents the letter X. An X-ray picture (radiograph) taken by Röntgen An X-ray is a form of electromagnetic radiation with a wavelength approximately in the range of 5 pm to 10 nanometers (corresponding to frequencies in the range 30 PHz...

Auger recombination is a similar Auger effect which occurs in semiconductors. An electron and electron hole (electron-hole pair) can recombine giving up their energy to an electron in the conduction band, increasing its energy. A semiconductor is a solid whose electrical conductivity can be controlled over a wide range, either permanently or dynamically. ... In solid state physics, an electron hole (usually referred to simply as a hole) is the absence of an electron from the otherwise full valence band. ...

The reverse effect is known as impact ionization. Impact ionization is the process in a material by which one energetic charge carrier can lose energy by the creation of other charge carriers. ...

There are two international committees that write standards on Auger electron spectroscopy. They are the ASTM (American Society for Testing Materials International) committee E42 and the ISO (International Standards Organization) technical committee TC-201.

History

The Auger emission process was discovered in the 1920s by Lise Meitner, an Austrian physicist. Subsequently Pierre Victor Auger, a French Physicist, also discovered the process. Auger reported the discovery in the journal Radium in 1925 and it was Auger who had the process named after him. Lise Meitner ca. ... Pierre Victor Auger (May 14, 1899 - December 25, 1993) was a French physicist, born in Paris. ...

See Also

• Carrier Generation and Recombination
• Auger electron spectroscopy