SI K, SI L, AND CR K X-RAY VALENCE-BAND STUDIES OF BONDING IN CHROMIUM SILICIDES - EXPERIMENT AND THEORY

We present Si K, Si L, and Cr K x-ray emission bands of Cr3Si, CrSi, a nd CrSi2 together with Si K and Si L emisison bands of Cr5Si3. The mea sured spectra are compared with ab initio pseudopotential calculations of the emission bands of Cr3Si, CrSi, and CrSi2. The Si L spectra wer e separated into contributions of Si s-like and Si d-like states. Good agreement between theory and experiment is found. The trends in devel opment of spectral features with sample composition can be qualitative ly understood by the bonding behavior of Cr and Si atoms.