Relation between the shape of measured loss function and the resolution of the XPS spectrum

The loss function of Ag has been calculated using a 3d3r2and 3d5r2 pair of relatively high resolution XPS spectrum. The structure of the loss function is in a good agreement with structures reported so far, except for the existence of the smallest energy peak. It is demonstrated that the loss function thus obtained from a spectrum measured using a selected resolution can provide backgrounds for other spectra no matter at what resolution they were taken. Conversely, a question arises if it is possible to extract the same loss function directly from a very poorly resolved spectrum. The present results show that, at least, some structure is indeed restored despite the increased numerical difficulty in finding the optimum solution. q1999 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved