アブストラクト: |
For obtaining reliable nanostructural details of large amounts of sample ---
and if it is applicable --- Small-Angle Scattering (SAS) is a prime technique
to use. It promises to obtain bulk-scale, statistically sound information on
the morphological details of the nanostructure, and has thus led to many a
researcher investing their time in it over the last eight decades of
development. Due to pressure both from scientists requesting more details on
increasingly complex nanostructures, as well as the ever improving
instrumentation leaving less margin for ambiguity, small-angle scattering
methodologies have been evolving at a high pace over the last few decades.
As the quality of any results can only be as good as the data that goes into
these methodologies, the improvements in data collection and all imaginable
data correction steps are reviewed here. This work is intended to provide a
comprehensive overview of all data corrections, to aid the small-angle
scatterer to decide which are relevant for their measurement and how these
corrections are performed. Clear mathematical descriptions of the corrections
are provided where feasible. Furthermore, as no quality data exists without a
decent estimate of its precision, the error estimation and propagation through
all these steps is provided alongside the corrections. With these data
corrections, the collected small-angle scattering pattern can be made of the
highest standard allowing for authoritative nanostructural characterisation
through its analysis. A brief background of small-angle scattering, the
instrumentation developments over the years, and pitfalls that may be
encountered upon data interpretations are provided as well.
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