The Effect of Chemical Combination on K Fluorescent X-Ray Emission Lines

The width and index of asymmetry of the fluorescent Kα₁, Kα₂ and Kβ₁ emission lines of pure Zn, Cu, Fe, Mn, Cr and 26 compounds, including the halides and sulfides of Cu and Fe, have been measured with a double crystal spectrometer. The changes between the shapes of the lines of the metals and their oxides are in good agreement with those determined by Roseberry and Bearden for the same emission lines produced by direct excitation (electron impact), and indicate that the method of excitation does not influence the shape of the lines. A study of the Cu and Fe halide and sulfide lines shows some regularities in the change of the width and index of asymmetry with the percentage composition, the most outstanding of which are for the iron sulfides FeS, Fe₃{S}₄$, ${Fe}₂S₃, FeS₂. As the percentage of sulfur increases, both the width and the index of asymmetry decrease for all lines, the maximum change being of the order of 40 percent for the width of the Kα₁ lines.