Spectroscopy for Materials Characterization

The first chapter is dedicated to the basic aspects of radiation–matter interaction in the visible‐ultraviolet range and the fundamentals of absorption and emission (fluorescence and phosphorescence) processes of atoms and molecules. This chapter is followed by two chapters on time‐resolved spectroscopy at the nanosecond scale and the more recent frontier approach of ultrafast spectroscopy at the femtosecond scale. These chapters detail the aspects of the electron dynamics in the excited states after pulsed excitation through emission and absorption processes including the Raman effect. Then, a chapter dedicated to fluorescence microscopy imaging at the nanoscale domain is presented with confocal and two‐photon techniques, where aspects of spatial resolution and dynamics are explored. The molecular vibrational spectroscopy in the infrared range is tackled in Chapters 5and 6by both the absorption and the Raman scattering effects. These chapters report on the fundamental aspects of radiation‐molecular vibration interaction and consider the traditional experimental methods, detailing the most recent applications of microscopy and joined vibrational–atomic force microscopy. The following two chapters consider spectroscopy related to irradiation effects. The first is focused on the thermoluminescence phenomenon of light emission induced by heating a sample after it has been exposed to ionizing radiation environment. The spectroscopic aspects are introduced and the basics of the phenomenon together with the interpretation of trap states and release thermodynamics are deepened in view of the application in many emerging fields such as dosimetry. In a similar context, Chapter 8reports on the phenomena of radiation‐induced absorption, emission, and compaction with a focus on the novel online (in situ) measurements, particularly useful for the spectroscopic study of the materials' modifications during their exposure to ionizing radiation as well as their recovery processes. Chapters 9and 10treat the magnetic spectroscopy illustrating the electron and nuclear phenomena. In particular, electron paramagnetic resonance in the static and dynamic domains are dealt with in the former chapter, considering hyperfine interaction, transient dynamics, and the S = 1 state paramagnetism. In the latter chapter, the standard as well as the non‐conventional nuclear magnetic resonance phenomena are introduced including the Fourier transform, the Magic Angle Spinning, and the time domain studies. The book then reports on high‐energy spectroscopy with three chapters on X‐rays and ultraviolet radiation. Chapter 11reports on the absorption process of X‐rays in near edge and pre‐edge, also including fine structure determination and in situ spectroscopy. Chapter 12 introduces photoelectron emission illustrating the surface maps and the depth and angle resolved profiles. Successively, Chapter 13covers vacuum ultraviolet excitations considering the most widely available sources. Finally, two structural spectroscopy chapters on transmission electron spectroscopy (TEM) and atomic force microscopy (AFM) are included. They report on the structural investigation at the atomic and nanometric scale including those spectroscopic aspects pertaining to high‐energy excitation in the former technique and to the novel interpretation of spectroscopy in the latter.

The book, as stated above, is the result of the contribution of different scientists mainly working in the field of physics, chemistry, surface science, and nanoscience. Their different points of view assure a multidisciplinary approach to the techniques and, as a consequence, appeal to a broad readership of researchers and students dedicated to the studies on materials.

The Editor Simonpietro Agnello

Simonpietro Agnello Department of Physics and Chemistry – Emilio Segrè University of Palermo Palermo Italy

Raffaele Giuseppe Agostino Dipartimento di Fisica Università della Calabria Rende CS Italy

Antonino Alessi Fraunhofer Institute for Technological Trend AnalysisAppelsgarten 2 Euskirchen Germany Laboratoire des Solides IrradiésCEA/DRF/IRAMIS,CNRS, Ecole polytechnique Institut Polytechnique de Paris Palaiseau France

Gianpiero Buscarino Department of Physics and Chemistry – Emilio Segrè University of Palermo Palermo Italy

Marco Cannas Department of Physics and Chemistry – Emilio Segrè University of Palermo Palermo Italy

Pellegrino Conte Department of Agriculture,Food and Forestry Sciences University of Palermo Palermo Italy

Vincenzo De Michele Laboratoire Hubert Curien Université Jean Monnet Saint‐Etienne France

Giuliana Faggio Department of Information Engineering Infrastructure and Sustainable Energy University Mediterranea of Reggio Calabria Reggio Calabria Italy

Tiziana Fiore Department of Physics and Chemistry – Emilio Segrè University of Palermo Palermo Italy

Vincenzo Formoso Dipartimento di Fisica Università della Calabria Rende CS Italy

Franco Gelardi Department of Physics and Chemistry – Emilio Segrè University of Palermo Palermo Italy

Francesco Giannici Department of Physics and Chemistry – Emilio Segrè University of Palermo Palermo Italy

Sylvain Girard Laboratoire Hubert Curien Université Jean Monnet Saint‐Etienne France

Rossella Grillo Department of Information Engineering Infrastructure and Sustainable Energy University Mediterranea of Reggio Calabria Reggio Calabria Italy

Alessandro Longo The European Synchrotron Grenoble France ISMN‐CNR Palermo Italy

Fabrizio Messina Department of Physics and Chemistry – Emilio Segrè University of Palermo Palermo Italy

Giacomo Messina Department of Information Engineering Infrastructure and Sustainable Energy University Mediterranea of Reggio Calabria Reggio Calabria Italy

Adriana Morana Laboratoire Hubert Curien Université Jean Monnet Saint‐Etienne France

Federico Moretti Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory Berkeley CA USA

Claudia Pellerito Department of Physics and Chemistry – Emilio Segrè University of Palermo Palermo Italy

Christoph J. Sahle The European Synchrotron Grenoble France

Giuseppe Sancataldo Department of Physics and Chemistry – Emilio Segrè University of Palermo Palermo Italy

Alice Sciortino Department of Physics and Chemistry – Emilio Segrè University of Palermo Palermo Italy

Michelangelo Scopelliti Department of Physics and Chemistry – Emilio Segrè University of Palermo Palermo Italy

Alberto Spinella Advanced Technologies Network Center (ATeN Center) University of Palermo Palermo Italy

Lavinia Vaccaro Department of Physics and Chemistry – Emilio Segrè University of Palermo Palermo Italy

Valeria Vetri Department of Physics and Chemistry – Emilio Segrè University of Palermo Palermo Italy

Anatoly F. Zatsepin Russian Academy of SciencesUral DivisionYekaterinburgRussia Institute of Physics and TechnologyUral Federal UniversityYekaterinburgRussia

Dmitry A. Zatsepin Russian Academy of SciencesUral DivisionYekaterinburgRussia Institute of Physics and TechnologyUral Federal UniversityYekaterinburgRussia

Simonpietro Agnello

Department of Physics and Chemistry – Emilio Segrè, University of Palermo, Palermo, Italy

The basic everyday experience of the colors around us inspires the knowledge of the phenomenon of radiation–matter interaction. Sun, the source of daylight, emits a large quantity of electromagnetic field frequencies ( ν ), or wavelengths ( λ ). When these rays impinge on matter, they can be reflected (scattered) or absorbed by the constituent atoms and molecules. These phenomena give rise to the appearance of colored objects since the light arriving at our eyes (a light sensor) depends on the emitted radiation or the reflected one, having fewer frequencies than the original sunlight due to the absorption effect of matter around us. In this chapter, some empirical aspects of absorption and emission phenomena will be introduced.