Equipment & Infrastructure

XRF x-ray fluorescence spectroscopy

X-ray fluorescence spectroscopy (XRF) is an analytical technique used to determine the chemical composition of solids, liquids and powders. X-rays are used to excite the sample which subsequently emits specific X-ray fluorescence. It can be used to obtain a qualitative screening of the analysed materials or after calibration to obtain a quantitative chemical composition. It is a non-destructive technique and for most samples sample preparation is hardly required.

 Typical applications of XRF

• Determination of chemical composition of solid metallic samples
• Determination of layer thickness (quality control)
  • Layer thickness of metallic coatings, eg Sn, Zn, Cr …
  • Layer thickness based on a tracer element
    • Cr, P, Ti…in passivation layers
    • Si in silane layers
    • S in NIT layers
  • Determination of inorganic elements in liquids, such as oils, emulsions, water samples
  • Determination of chemical composition of dust on filters (eg after air sampling)
  • Determination of chemical composition of powders or ferro alloys

 XRF can be divided in two main categories depending on the detection method, ie wavelength (WD) or energy (ED) dispersive systems. OCAS has an ED-XRF system and a complementary WD-XRF is currently being installed.