Secondary ion emission from Langmuir-Blodgett (LB) films investigated by time-of-flight secondary ion mass spectrometry

Langmuir-Blodgett (LB) films can be regarded as suitable samples for the basic study of the secondary ion emissions in static secondary ion mass spectrometry (S-SIMS), due to its flexibility for desired sample preparation. In this study, using cadmium arachidate films formed on a silicon substrate, the intensity variations were investigated for various kind of secondary ion species obtained by time-of-flight (TOF) SIMS. The results are discussed with respect to the number of monolayers and the energy loss process of the primary ion beam in the organic films and at the film-substrate interfaces.