Mössbauer spectroscopy: survey and application to Fe2As

Abstract

The fundamental concepts required for a basic understanding of Mössbauer spectroscopy are presented. These include the principle of recoilless events, the instrumentation needed for a Mössbauer laboratory, and the physical meanings of parameters used in Mössbauer studies. A model is developed that can describe spectra in which time dependent effects are negligible. An experimental application is given, in the form of a study of Fe2As in which this model is used. There exists some controversy over the values of certain parameters which describe Fe2As; it was hope that a computer fitting program based on this model would provide conclusive information about the parameters (is n non-zero?). This work did not find definitive values of the parameters, but the study of Fe2As and of the methods used to try to solve the questions over the controversial parameters lead to a better grasp of Mössbauer spectroscopy, of its power, and of its limitations.