ISSN:
0049-8246
Keywords:
Chemistry
;
Analytical Chemistry and Spectroscopy
Source:
Wiley InterScience Backfile Collection 1832-2000
Topics:
Physics
Notes:
Extensive use has been made of particle-induced x-ray emission (PIXE) analysis over the past several years. The optimization of its detection sensitivity calls for the judicious selection of several parameters including, inter alia, the beam energy used and the x-ray window thickness. Thin windows are required in order to detect the light elements whose x-ray energies are so low that they are heavily attenuated by any absorber material between the target and the detector. The choice of beam energy is dependant on the respective x-ray production cross-sections for elements of interest, the related background generated, as well as the associated beam energy degradation in the targets. These considerations often lead to a state where protons, elastically scattered from the target, have sufficient energy to penetrate the window and enter the x-ray detector. The extent to which such protons and their related secondary electron production affect the energy spectrum resolution of intrinsic germanium and Si(Li) x-ray detectors is demonstrated for a proton beam energy range from 2.1 to 3.5 MeV with a window thickness equivalent to the range of a 2.5 MeV proton.
Additional Material:
11 Ill.
Type of Medium:
Electronic Resource
URL:
http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/xrs.1300120203