Beginners Guide to XPS Analysis with CasaXPS

In this video, Mark Isaacs of UCL and HarwellXPS goes through some of the absolute basics of data processing with CasaXPS. From installing the software to quantifying some simple spectra.
For more XPS videos, check out the rest of our channel, or to find lots of articles about XPS theory and analysis, check out www.harwellxps.guru

[@robertcormia7970]

Thanks Mark, I'm a new CASA XPS user and stumbling through tutorials, this was super helpful!

[@zahrah4253]

Thank you for the video, it is very useful!

[@makfathi52]

This video is so informative. Thanks for sharing

[@greatumenweke8541]

Thanks Dr. Mark, this is very useful. Would you recommend the atomic concentration % values obtained from the high resolution peaks over those obtained from the full spectra (Wide)?

[@HarwellXPS]

Interesting question - using a wide scan is reliable as you can be sure there is no instrumental drift and all peaks are run under the same conditions (plus these are typically run at a higher pass energy so signal is maximised) - but of course higher resolution scans will be a more accurate representation of the area (provided the background is modelled correctly of course). If you are confident that the sample remains unchanged and there is no instrument drift then you can quantify from HR spectra most definitely. I'd suggest looking at both as they should be very similar - if they are very different then you might have some experimental problems! We often run surveys before and after HR scans to ensure there has been no changes during analysis (either sample degradation or instrument changes).

[@HarwellXPS]

Also - using the wide scan, casa has an easy function for estimating errors. It's still possible to do this with HR scans but not as simple (perhaps a new video for us!)

[@Cecilie347]

Thank you for this video! What is the advantage of opening the merged files? I'm not sure I understand what their purpose is.

[@HarwellXPS]

Hi Cecile, merged files allow you to easily compare spectra, copy or propagate fit models and quantify large datasets as opposed to looking at individual scans

[@sarojdahal74]

Which library file to use for the data taken via Gamma data Scienta instrument?

[@HarwellXPS]

Possibly the Schofield library, but best to check with the experimental officer

[@omkarkedge3130]

The intial file management part is so confusing,. maybe it's because I have just started analysing xps data.

[@HarwellXPS]

Thanks for the feedback Omkar! We've recently expanded our beginner videos to try and make things easier to follow. Perhaps you would like to have a look at the full course now online (for free) here: www.harwellxps.guru/knowledge-base/xps-for-beginners-full-course/

[@vagbe]

It is not possible to change name of the data sets. I merged all samples and their data set names are 0, 1, 2.. etc. It is so confusing, cause when I add them separately I can see the file name at the top of the window.

[@HarwellXPS]

If you click 'edit mode' on the top toolbar then the blocks will display a name for each sample. You can then double click on the name to change it. Hope that helps! 👍

[@vagbe]

@@HarwellXPS yes, it worked! Thank you! I've just started using casa yesterday. I have additional question. For C, N, O creating baseline by shifting regions works just fine. But with cobalt it is a completely different story. The Shirley baseline crosses over the measurement graph. I understand that the Shirley baseline separates Co 2p1/2 and Co 2p3/2 regions, but between these ranges, the baseline should only touch the measurement line, not cross over it. Do you know how to move it down?

[@HarwellXPS]

@Ben Lokis yes casa is not always great at putting the automatic baselines in for transition metals/doublets. If you open 'Quantify' (press f7) this will open the region menu. You can zoom into the area by drawing a box around the peaks and clicking in the box - you can adjust the edges of the regions by clicking and dragging the verticals sides of the boxes left and right with the REGIONS tab open in the Quantify window. This works on survey/wide scans and in high resolution peaks too.