Analysis of EELS near edge structures to study the bonding character in intermetallic alloys

The energy loss near edge structures of an early transition metal aluminide (TiAl) and late transition metal aluminides (FeAl and NiAl) have been compared with calculations based on band structure techniques. The differences between theory and experiment are discussed in terms of the validity of the single particle approximation. The better agreement between experiment and theory for the late transition metal aluminides is attributed to the …