Positive deviation from Debye's theory in small-angle x-ray scattering

The small-angle x-ray scattering (SAXS) resulting from a non-ideal two-phase system having sharply defined phase boundaries but with micro-fluctuations of electron density within any phase shows a positive deviation from Debye's theory. We have found a simple method suitable for fitting the slit-smeared SAXS data and correcting the positive deviation. The validity of this procedure is tested on porous ZrO₂ xerogel prepared using the sol-gel process.