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Application of Computers in Electron Probe and X-Ray Fluorescence Analysis

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Advances in X-Ray Analysis

Abstract

This paper is a review of automation of electron microprobe and x-ray fluorescence instrumentation. Such a review seems timely because of the great increase in the application of computer systems in this field over the past decade. Some of these applications have been conceived to meet true technological needs while in other cases they have been undertaken to “keep up with the Joneses.” I would like to show not only what automated systems are now feasible but also when and how they should be employed. The “when” and “how” of automation are largely dependent upon the application being considered; in this study, x-ray applications have been divided into the following classes: (l) on-stream process-control, (2) off-line quality assurance, (3) routine service laboratory, (4) general-purpose analytical laboratory. Several phases are present in these classes, including: specimen preparation and loading, measurement, data acquisition and transfer, data processing and display, and finally, archival data storage. Various workers have undertaken the automation of all these operations in one or the other of the classes of applications; from a review of their work and by examining details of each operation within the framework of a given application, we can now draw conclusions on the extent of desirable automation.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Institute for Materials Research, National Bureau of Standards, Washington, D. C., 20234, USA

    Stanley D. Rasberry

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  1. Stanley D. Rasberry
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Editors and Affiliations

  1. National Bureau of Standards, Washington, D.C., USA

    Kurt F. J. Heinrich

  2. Denver Research Institute, The University of Denver, Denver, Colorado, USA

    Charles S. Barrett , John B. Newkirk  & Clayton O. Ruud ,  & 

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© 1972 Springer Science+Business Media New York

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Rasberry, S.D. (1972). Application of Computers in Electron Probe and X-Ray Fluorescence Analysis. In: Heinrich, K.F.J., Barrett, C.S., Newkirk, J.B., Ruud, C.O. (eds) Advances in X-Ray Analysis. Springer, Boston, MA. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4613-9966-7_3

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4613-9966-7_3

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Boston, MA

  • Print ISBN: 978-1-4613-9968-1

  • Online ISBN: 978-1-4613-9966-7

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