What is NRA and why use deuterium?
Nuclear reaction analysis is a technique that can quantify light elements in thin films absolutely, it is isotope specific, it is independent of chemical or matrix effects and it can depth profile non-destructively. NRA involves probing the sample with light ions accelerated to approximately one tenth of the speed of light and measuring the energies and yields of resulting nuclear reaction products, it is often used instead of back scattering spectrometry when the matrix contains elements heavier than the isotope of interest. For many elements, some being oxygen, nitrogen, carbon, aluminium, magnesium and sulphur, the use of a deuterium probing beam (rather than protons or helium) can give enhanced sensitivity and accuracy owing to larger nuclear reaction cross sections, better defined spectral features and less background interference. • How sensitive and accurate is D-NRA ? The bulk carbon concentration in copper was measured with sensitivities of a few parts per million by Papillon
