Rapid reduction of self-assembled monolayers of a disulfide terminated para-nitrophenyl alkyl ester on roughened Au surfaces during XPS measurements

► Nitroaromatic SAMs undergo fast reduction to amines on roughened Au beads. ► Reaction is promoted by secondary electrons from the substrate and H+. ► Higher rate of reduction is directly related to photoelectron emission efficiency. ► Roughened Au coated slide is the optimal substrate to measure both XPS and SERS.