Time-of-flight secondary ion mass spectrometry (TOF-SIMS):--versatility in chemical and imaging surface analysis.

Time-of-flight secondary ion mass spectrometry (TOF-SIMS) has emerged as one of the most important and versatile surface analytical techniques available for advanced materials research. This arises from its excellent mass resolution, sensitivity and high spatial resolution providing both chemical and distributional (laterally and depth) information for a wide variety of materials and applications. Understanding the various modes of operation and the information that each provides is crucial to the analyst in order to optimise the type of data that is obtained. New developments in primary ion sources and the application of multivariate analysis techniques, which can only extend the versatility and applicability of the technique, are also discussed.