Sub-keV electron emission spectra from irradiated gold nanoparticles
In plain words
When a gold particle absorbs an x-ray it releases a burst of slow electrons whose number and energies set the local damage. Simulation programs disagree on that burst.
Precise statement
Determine the yield and energy spectrum of electrons below 1 keV escaping a gold nanoparticle of 2 to 100 nm diameter per absorbed photon of 20 to 150 keV, including Auger and Coster-Kronig cascades (chains of atomic relaxations that each eject an electron), solid-state and plasmon effects, and self-absorption inside the particle, to an accuracy of about 20 percent. An answer is a measured and computed emission spectrum that reconciles the transport codes and gives the radial dose profile within 1 micron of the particle.
What would settle it
Electron spectroscopy of size-selected gold nanoparticles under monoenergetic x-rays, matched by a condensed-phase cascade calculation.
Status in the literature
A multi-code Monte Carlo comparison published around 2020 found large spread in secondary electron spectra and dose enhancement for the same nanoparticle geometry.