When your business considers an XRF purchase, there are many details to consider and many questions you may have. What is XRF? What does XRF do? What elements does it analyze? Is XRF accurate? Is it fast? If you and your coworkers are asking yourselves these questions, you will find some helpful answers below.
How Handheld XRF Works: A Step-by-Step Guide
XRF is an acronym for x-ray fluorescence, a process whereby electrons are displaced from their atomic orbital positions, releasing a burst of energy that is characteristic of a specific element. This release of energy is then registered by the detector in then XRF instrument, which in turn categorizes the energies by element. Here is a detailed breakdown of the process:
The entire fluorescence process occurs in small factions of a second. A measurement using this process and a modern handheld XRF gun can be made in a matter of seconds. The actual time required for a measurement will depend on the nature of the sample and the levels of interest. High percentage levels will take a few seconds while part-per-million levels will take a few minutes.
Contact Bruker today to find out more about XRF applications or to schedule a free demonstration of our instruments at your worksite.
Handheld XRF Applications: