Consistency of calculated and measured electron inelastic mean free paths

We present an evaluation of the consistency of calculated and measured electron inelastic mean free paths (IMFPs) for seven elemental solids (Al, Si, Ni, Cu, Ge, Ag, and An). These solids were selected because, for each, there were two or more independent IMFP calculations and two or more IMFP measurements by elastic-peak electron spectroscopy. We found that the calculated IMFPs for each element showed a high degree of consistency and that there was greater scatter among the measured IMFPs. Comparison of the measured IMFPs with the calculated IMFPs showed generally good agreement. The greatest consistency in the comparisons was: found for Ni, Cu, Ag, and Au. Recommended values of the IMFPs for these four elements can be obtained from a single formula (used to fit the calculated IMFPs for each element) for electron energies between 50 and 10(4) eV. (C) 1999 American Vacuum Society. [S0734-2101(99)02904-8].