Exchange Interaction in Fe$_{1-x}$Ni$_{x}$Alloys: XPS Study

In this paper, high Fe-concentration Fe$_{1-x}$Ni$_{x}$ alloys were investigated using high resolution X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) down to 10K temperature. The Fe 2s core level exhibits three features, two low binding features corresponding to exchange interaction between ionized 2s core level and the unpaired 3d electrons. The high binding energy feature corresponds to the screening of 2s core hole by 4s conduction electrons. Our studies suggest high local magnetic moments on Fe sites.