AVS 53rd International Symposium
    Applied Surface Science Tuesday Sessions
       Session AS+SS-TuM

Paper AS+SS-TuM12
X-ray Spectrometry with the NIST Transition Edge Sensor Microcalorimeter

Tuesday, November 14, 2006, 11:40 am, Room 2005

Session: Environmental Materials and X-ray Spectroscopies
Presenter: T. Jach, National Institute of Standards and Technology
Authors: T. Jach, National Institute of Standards and Technology
N.W.M. Ritchie, National Institute of Standards and Technology
J. Ullom, National Institute of Standards and Technology
Correspondent: Click to Email
We report on the use of the NIST Transition Edge Sensor Microcalorimeter to obtain high-resolution x-ray spectra over extended energy ranges for materials analysis. The microcalorimeter is a detector with dimensions of 400 µm x 400 µm oper deposited by individual photons by means of a resistive sensor ated at a temperature of 70 mK. It detects the energy operating at its superconducting-normal transition. The resolution of the detector is determined by the energy range for which it is designed. Our current detector has demonstrated a resolution of 4.4 eV over an energy range of 7 keV. The spectra were obtained from samples excited by the high-energy electron beam in an electron microprobe. We have performed quantitative analyses on two NIST reference glasses in which we are able to characterize the concentrations of multiple elements to an accuracy of less than 2%. The resolution of the lines in their spectra was such that we are able to identify the transitions in a series and their satellites. In transitions where the initial state is the valence band, our energy resolution is starting to allow identification of features in the density of states. We foresee detectors which will permit the chemical identification of species in x-ray fluorescence similar to what is now done with ESCA, but without the need for ultra high vacuum.