Accession Number:

AD0744992

Title:

A Simple Model of Soft X-Ray Photoemission

Descriptive Note:

Corporate Author:

R AND D ASSOCIATES MARINA DEL REY CA

Personal Author(s):

• Schaefer, Richard R.

Report Date:

1971-11-01

Pagination or Media Count:

23.0

Abstract:

In order to evaluate some of the features of the electromagnetic response of space systems to pulsed, plane wave photon environments, it is necessary to understand the intensity, energy spectrum, and angular distribution of the electron emission current. For a realistic application, the electron emission spectrum and angular distribution can be found by convolving the incident photon spectrum with the electron yield as a function of photon energy. This electron yield, which expresses the number of electrons emitted from a surface per incident photon, can be expected to vary with angle of photon incidence and material composition as well as with photon energy. Soft x-rays contribute to electron emission primarily through photoelectric interactions and the electron yield for soft x-rays will be referred to here as the photoelectric yield. In this paper, a simple model of the photoelectric yield is proposed and predictions based upon the model are compared with published experimental data. Furthermore, simple expressions for the electron emission current for arbitrary incident photon fluxes are derived for the higher energy electron components.

Descriptors:

• *ALUMINUM
• *PHOTOELECTRIC EFFECT
• MATHEMATICAL MODELS
• SPACE ENVIRONMENTS
• PHOTOELECTRONS
• X RAYS

Subject Categories:

• Electricity and Magnetism
• Atomic and Molecular Physics and Spectroscopy

Distribution Statement:

APPROVED FOR PUBLIC RELEASE