Improved Microcalorimeter Detectors for X-Ray Chemical Shift Mapping

X-ray fluorescence spectroscopy is a widely used and extremely sensitive analytical technique for qualitative as well as quantitative chemical analysis. Superconducting Transition Edge Sensor (TES) microcalorimeter detectors have now been developed that achieve an energy resolution of 2 eV (full width at half maximum) for 1.5 keV X-rays, which is sufficient to enable the measurement of the small shift of the X-ray line position and line shape that occurs depending on the chemical bonding state of the fluoresced atoms. STAR Cryoelectronics proposes to develop the necessary processes to fabricate improved TES detectors that match this performance and integrate these detectors into the company’s energy dispersive microcalorimeter X-ray spectrometer for chemical shift mapping. This will significantly enhance the power of X-ray fluorescence spectroscopy as an analytical tool for a broad range of applications.