ION-BOMBARDMENT INFLUENCE ON THE CR AUGER AUTOIONIZATION STRUCTURE

The effect of fast Ar+ ion bombardment (1 divided-by 5 k-eV) on the Cr autoionization processes has been investigated by AES and EELS. The a utoionization satellite intensity in the e--excited Cr MVV Auger emiss ion spectrum decreases showing a marked dependence on the ion energy a nd on the density of both ion and electron beam. Such a behaviour has been assigned to the activation of different deexcitation paths associ ated to the bombarding charged particles, while the excitation mechani sm preceding the autoionization emission is substantially unaffected, as shown by the M23 absorption edge in the loss spectra. The dependenc e on the ion energy suggests that the kinematics of the Ar+-induced co llisions at the surface play a role in the quenching of autoionization structure in Auger spectra.