Atomic photoeffect below 100 keV: An overview and future scope

The atomic photoeffect is a very important mechanism of photon interaction with matter, especially below 100 keV, and most of the experimental data on photoelectric interaction is concentrated in this energy region. In spite of the availability of a huge amount of data, large discrepancies are observed in cross-sections close to the absorption edges and particularly on the high energy side. The K-absorption edges could be easily studied using transmission experiments by selecting the energies, in either of two ways. First, photon energies could be selected as close to the edge as possible so that the experimental cross-sections would give a possible clue to the extended X-ray absorption fine structure which is seen on the high energy side of the K-edge. Secondly, one can choose a wider photon energy region to cover at least three times the shell binding energy so that more distant cross-section values help to predict the trends of the cross-section curve with more certainty. In the present study, the advantages of such a method, methods of experimental procedures, and difficulties in experimentation are presented.