 Typically ranging 1–20 minutes for a broad survey scan that measures the amount of all detectable elements, typically 1–15 minutes for high resolution scan that reveal chemical state differences (for a high signal/noise ratio for count area result often requires multiple sweeps of the region of interest), 1–4 hours for a depth profile that measures 4–5 elements as a function of etched depth (this process time can vary the most as many factors will play a role).XPS detects only electrons that have actually escaped from the sample into the vacuum of the instrument.In order to escape from the sample, a photoelectron must travel through the sample.