Detailed tabulation of atomic form factors, photoelectric absorption and scattering cross section, and mass attenuation coefficients in the vicinity of absorption edges in the soft x-ray (Z=30-36, Z=60-89, E=0.1 keV-10 keV), addressing convergence issues of earlier work

Abstract

Reliable knowledge of the complex x-ray form factor [Re(f) and f″] and the photoelectric attenuation coefficient (σPE) is required for crystallography, medical diagnosis, radiation safety, and XAFS studies. Discrepancies between currently used theoretical approaches of 200% exist for numerous elements from 1 to 3 keV x-ray energies. The key discrepancies are due to the smoothing of edge structure, the use of nonrelativistic wave functions, and the lack of appropriate convergence of wave functions. This paper addresses these key discrepancies and derives new theoretical results of substantially higher accuracy in near-edge soft x-ray regions. The high-energy limitations of the current approac..