Comparison of secondary ion yield data from amorphous and polycrystalline iron-based alloys

Absolute and relative practical sensitivities for Osub2sup+ bombardment of 14 elements, present as 3 atom % admixtures in a Fesub80Bsub17Xsub3 metallic glass matrix, were determined by SIMS. The variation of sensitivity data between elements is similar to that found for pure element samples. The 3 % admixture causes a small but statistically significant matrix effect on the sensitivities of the matrix elements Fe and B. Comparison with sensitivity data of the same elements in other matrices (stainless steel, silicon) shows that sensitivities in different matrices are within 30 rel % for most elements indicating the possibility of transferring relative sensitivity factor data determined on metallic glasses to other Fe-based alloys and thereby obtaining a semiquantitative analysis. (Author)