Calculations of Auger intensity versus beam position for a sample with layers perpendicular to its surface

Recent advances in nanotechnology are a driving force for the improvement of lateral resolution in advanced analytical techniques such as scanning electron microscopy or scanning Auger microscopy (SAM). Special samples with multilayers which are perpendicular to their surface are presently proposed for testing the lateral resolution, as discussed in recent works of Senoner et al (2004 Surf. Interface Anal. 36 1423). The relevant experiment needs a theoretical description based on recent progress in the theory. Monte Carlo simulations of electron trajectories make possible an accurate description of the considered system. We selected exemplary samples, with layers perpendicular to the surface. The layer materials are elemental solids with high, medium and low atomic numbers, i.e. Au|Cu|Au and Au|Si|Au. For these systems calculations of the Auger current versus beam position were performed. We found that, for a system with layers consisting of elements of considerably different atomic numbers, the relation can have an unexpected extreme. This observation can be important in analysis of SAM pictures.