Sample current maximum at the critical angle of x‐ray total reflection

The x‐ray photoemitted electron intensity and sample current of a GaAs wafer are measured at 2 and 3 keV excitation photon energies while varying the glancing angle of the incident x rays. It is found that the sample current and the x‐ray photoemitted electron intensity have similar behavior with respect to the glancing angle. The sample current as well as the photoemission intensity have a maximum at the critical angle of the x‐ray total reflection. This is the first report of the observation of the existence of a sample current maximum at the critical angle of x‐ray total reflection.