Determination of the Cu2O Thickness on BTAH-Inhibited Copper by Reconstruction of Auger Electron Spectra

The influence of the benzotriazole (BTAH) inhibitor on the thickness of the oxide layer formed on Cu immersed in 3% NaCl solution was studied with angle-resolved X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. The X-ray-induced Auger spectra were reconstructed with the Monte Carlo algorithm using the spectra of the basic constituents [Cu(I)BTA, , and Cu] formed on the surface. The relative contributions of the basic constituents to the composite spectra measured at different emission angles were then used to estimate the thickness of the oxide layer. The results show that the presence of BTAH substantially reduces the thickness of the oxide layer formed on Cu in chloride media. The average thickness of the layer below the Cu(I)BTA layer is estimated to be , whereas the thickness of the noninhibited sample is .