Improved Sensitivity with the New Apollo XRF ML-50 Detector on the Orbis Micro-XRF Analyzer

摘要

The measurement of trace elements is important across a wide variety of materials characterization problems. When measuring small glass fragments collected from crime and accident scenes, forensics experts analyze trace strontium (Sr) and zirconium (Zr) typically unintentionally incorporated into the glass during manufacturing as one point of identification or comparison. Traces of lead (Pb) and cadmium (Cd) are measured in a wide variety of commercial materials for verification of adherence to environmental regulations such as the European Union's Restriction of Hazardous Substances (RoHS) directive. Trace chlorine (Cl) is depth profiled in concrete to quantify ion permeation from deicing agents. In these cases and many others, improvements in detector performance can lead to improvements in micro-XRF sensitivity and faster data collection, thereby providing users with faster, more accurate results. Up to now, the Orbis micro-XRF analyzer could be configured with two different X-ray detectors.