Work Function Changes on Contact Materials

The electron beam retarding potential technique was used in a display-type Varian LEED-Auger apparatus to determine work function changes on contact materials Pd, Au, Ag and Pd-Ag 40 at.% (atomic percent). Surface compositional changes were created by heating and argon ion bombardment treatments and monitored by Auger electron spectroscopy. Using the known work function value of atomically clean Pd as a reference, the average work function of each compositional state of the particular contact material was evaluated.