Round-robin experiments have been performed in order to establish the correction of binding energy shift of XPS spectra in oxides by the chargeup which results from the radiation of X-rays or ion sputtering and to determine the criteria for the change of chemical state by Ar ion sputtering. Samples of Al2O3, SiO2, MgO, TiO2 and NiO, in plate and powder form, were used for the experiments. We determined that the difference in energy between the Al 2p (Si 2p or Mg 1s) line and the O 1s line gives a better correction of the measurements of the binding energy shift of Al2O3 (SiO2 or MgO) than that between the Al 2p (Si 2p or Mg 1s) line and the C is line. After Ar ion sputtering, TiO2 and NiO are reduced and damage is induced in the case of Al2O3 and SiO2, while MgO remains stable, as examined using the binding energy and FWHM of XPS spectra. We revealed that the changes caused by ion sputtering of oxides depend on the change of free formation enthalpy and the ionicity. We also showed that both plate and powder samples are useful as standards for determining the binding energy from XPS spectra.
