Electron energy loss spectroscopy of Gd compounds

Electron energy loss spectroscopy (EELS) has been used to study excitations in Gd metal and Gd compounds: Gd5Ge4, Gd5Si2Ge2, GdTiSi and GdTiGe. The energy of the primary electrons was changed in the range from 140 to 1346 eV, and the losses up to 60 eV were analyzed. The spectra show several features that can be attributed mainly to atomic excitations in Gd, like 4f → 4f and 5p → 5d. These transitions appear to be independent of the specific compound. The pronounced losses in the region from 13 to 17 eV are attributed to plasmon-like excitations and exhibit a dependence on the primary energy and on the specific compound.