SBIR Phase II: Development of a Dual Energy Micro-focused X-ray Excitation Beam for Chemical Analysis and Materials Characterization

这一小型企业创新研究(SBIR)第二阶段项目将开发一种用于微X射线荧光(Micro-XRF)分析的微聚焦双能X射线激发光束传输系统。该系统的开发将满足各种学科的关键需求，即大幅提高检测灵敏度(特别是低原子序数元素)、更高的空间分辨率、更好的分析精度和更大的吞吐量。通过进一步加快这种工具的快速应用，预计拟议的项目将影响9亿美元的XRF市场，该工具已被用于各种研究和工业应用，包括：开发先进材料、痕量金属的毒理学、绘制健康和患病生物组织中的矿物分布图、为石油和天然气中的特定储油层确定有效的石油提取方法、通过分析矿山废物来监测采矿效率，以及半导体行业中埋藏结构和包装部件的化学分析。目前，只有在同步加速器微型XRF上才有可能实现微米级分辨率的高空间分辨率元素组成测绘，分析灵敏度在百万分之几(Ppm)的水平上，而世界各地的同步加速器微型XRF数量有限，而且往往超额认购。现有的实验室微型XRF系统的性能在很大程度上受到所采用的X射线光学系统的限制--在焦点大小、聚焦效率和光谱响应方面。该项目将允许开发一种创新的X射线复合镜透镜，这将使微聚焦双能X射线激发光束传输系统能够对低Z元素和高Z元素具有高分析灵敏度、大X射线通量(高达领先系统的30倍)、微米级的空间分辨率和大工作距离(5厘米)。这种光束传输系统将用作扫描电子显微镜和独立的微型XRF系统中的附件。

This Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase II project will develop a microfocus dual energy x-ray excitation beam delivery system to be used for micro x-ray fluorescence (micro-XRF) analysis. The development of this system will address critical needs in a variety of disciplines for substantially improved detection sensitivity (particularly of low atomic number elements), higher spatial resolution, better analysis accuracy, and increased throughput. The proposed project is expected to impact the $ 900 million XRF market by further accelerating the rapid adoption of this tool, which has been utilized for a variety of research and industrial applications, including: development of advanced materials, toxicology of trace metals, mapping mineral distribution in healthy and diseased biological tissues, determining efficient oil extraction methods for specific reservoirs in oil & gas, monitoring mine efficiency by analyzing mine wastes, and chemical analysis of buried structures and packaging components in the semiconductor industry. Currently, achieving high spatial resolution mapping of elemental composition at the micrometer scale resolution with analysis sensitivity in the low parts per million (ppm) levels is only possible at synchrotron micro-XRFs, of which there are only a limited number of around the world, and which are often oversubscribed. The performance of existing laboratory micro-XRF systems is largely limited - in terms of focus size, focusing efficiency, and spectral response - by the x-ray optics which are employed. The project will permit the development of an innovative x-ray compound mirror lens which will enable a microfocus dual energy x-ray excitation beam delivery system with high analytical sensitivity to both low- and high-Z elements, large x-ray flux (up to thirty-fold better than leading systems), microns-scale spatial resolution, and large working distances (5 cm). This beam delivery system will be usable as an attachment in a scanning electron microscope and in a standalone micro-XRF system.