ISO 29081:2010

Overview

ISO 29081:2010 - Surface chemical analysis - Auger electron spectroscopy - Reporting of methods used for charge control and charge correction specifies the minimum information to report when performing Auger electron spectroscopy (AES) on insulating specimens where surface charging can affect measured Auger-electron energies. The standard ensures that AES measurement reports contain enough detail on how charging was controlled or corrected so results are reproducible, comparable and usable by other analysts.

Key topics and reporting requirements

ISO 29081:2010 defines the content to include with AES results (see Clauses 5–7 and Annex A). Key requirements and technical topics include:

• Methods of charge control used during acquisition (Clause 6.1) - e.g., grounding/mounting strategies, conductive coatings, low-energy ion neutralizers, beam/current management or other techniques described in Annex A.
• Reasons for choice of method and conditions that necessitated charge control (Clause 6.2).
• Specimen information that affects charging (Clause 6.3): specimen form (powder, film, bulk), dimensions, mounting method, and any pre- or in‑situ treatments.
• Experimental parameters (Clause 6.4): primary-beam energy/current, irradiation time, analyzer settings and any special hardware used (low-energy ion source, evaporative metal deposition, etc.).
• Effectiveness evidence (Clause 6.5): description or metrics showing how well charging was controlled.
• Charge correction reporting (Clause 7): method(s) used for post‑acquisition energy correction, the approach, and the numerical value of the correction energy applied (Δ correction energy).
• Instrument calibration per related AES energy‑scale standards (ISO 17973, ISO 17974).

Annex A provides a practical, hierarchical table of charge-control approaches ordered by simplicity and discusses specific strategies: decreasing resistivity or effective insulating thickness, reducing current density or dose, optimizing secondary-electron emission yield, sputter depth profiling, and handling non‑uniform specimens (particles, fibres, rough surfaces).

Practical applications and who uses it

ISO 29081:2010 is used to:

• Standardize reporting in research publications and commercial AES service reports.
• Enable reproducible surface chemical analysis of insulating or partially insulating materials (polymers, oxides, coatings, composites).
• Help analysts evaluate whether charging influenced peak energies or peak positions.

Primary users:

• Surface analysts and AES instrument operators
• Materials scientists and nanotechnology researchers
• QA/QC labs providing AES-based surface composition reports
• Instrument manufacturers and method developers
• Editors and reviewers assessing published AES data

Related standards

• ISO 17973, ISO 17974 - Calibration of AES energy scales
• ISO 18115 - Surface chemical analysis vocabulary
• ISO 18116 / ISO 18117 and ASTM standards - specimen mounting and preparation guidance
• ISO 19318 - analogous reporting requirements for X‑ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS)

Keywords: ISO 29081:2010, Auger electron spectroscopy, AES, charge control, charge correction, surface chemical analysis, insulating specimens, reporting requirements, instrument calibration.