Sample degradation and beam-induced damage in (synchrotron-based) electronic structure experiments

Synchrotron radiation-based methods, in particular photoemission spectroscopy, are very powerful tools for studying the electronic, chemical, and structural properties of materials and combinations of materials. Numerous experimental studies have been performed in the last decades using synchrotron radiation in physics, chemistry, material science, biology, medicine, and more. However, the advantage of high photon flux from synchrotron storage rings, which is beneficial or even crucial for many experiments, may impose new problems when sensitive samples are investigated, such as organic systems. They are prone to chemical changes when exposed to high photon fluxes. Here, we demonstrate how to identify beam-induced sample degradation and provide the best practice rules for reliable investigations and control experiments.