Optical constants of thin films from the characteristic electron energy losses

Abstract

A method for obtaining the optical constants by employing the correlation between the characteristic electron energy absorption spectrum of a substance with its optical properties is described. This method is applied to a study of the optical properties in the far ultraviolet of aluminum, a metal, and of polystyrene, an organic compound. The information that is derived by this method lends itself to a study of the optical oscillator strengths