Docentship lecture: From the photoelectric effect to modern photoelectron spectroscopy

Chairperson: professor Håkan Rensmo

Representative of the Docentship Committee: professor Carlos Pérez de los Heros

Abstract: High-energy light can cause electrons to be emitted from a material. This phenomenon is known as the photoelectric effect. The effect allows energy from the light to be transferred to electrons in the material, which can be explained by the wave-particle duality i.e., that light and electrons can be described both as waves and particles.

In this lecture I will demonstrate and explain the photoelectric effect. I will further show how this effect is used in photoelectron spectroscopy to study the electronic structure of matter, and what we can learn about the materials based on measurements of the electronic structure. Photoelectron spectroscopy, with abbreviations such as PES, XPS, UPS and ESCA, is today a standard technique for materials analysis and can, for example, provide information about chemical composition. The strength of the method is the ability to distinguish atoms in different chemical environments, which is called the chemical shift. During the lecture we will see typical examples of the chemical shift, as well as discuss the state-of-the-art of photoelectron spectroscopy.

The lecture is an obligatory teaching test for those applying for admittance as docent and it should be possible for students and others with basic academic education in the relevant field to follow it. The lecture lasts 40-45 minutes with subsequent discussion. The lecture will be given in Swedish.