What is XRF Analysis?
When x-rays or electron beams are irradiated on a substance, there is a certain probability that an inner orbital electron (K shell) will drop from its orbital (shown in the right figure). After an inner orbital electron drops and creates a vacancy, the atom becomes highly unstable. This state is called the excitation state. To restore the original state, an outer electron moves to the vacancy, creating an energy gap between orbitals and generating fluorescent x-rays.
The XRF Analyzer harnesses this fluorescent x-ray energy to identify the elements occurring in a substance.
SII manufactures XRF Coating Thickness Gauges that utilize this principle, as well as XRF Analyzers.
In addition to improvements in the precision and functionality of instruments, development has recently accelerated in the area of special instruments designed for specific applications (e.g., involving lithium ion secondary batteries or food). Incorporating a high-speed mapping function, the SEA6000VX allows the identification of constituent elements and their locations, displaying this information in a 2-dimensional distribution map.
