a Osaka National Research Institute, AIST, 1-8-31 Midorigaoka, Ikeda, Osaka 563-8577, Japan
b Rudjer Boskovic Institute, POB 1016, 10001, Zagreb, Croatia
c Himeji Institute of Technology, 2167 Shosha, Himeji, Hyogo 671-2201, Japan
Abstract:
A high-energy resolution PIXE system developed at a heavy ion microbeam line was used to analyze low energy X-rays below 1 keV. The system is equipped with a plane crystal spectrometer with a gas flow position sensitive proportional counter (PSPC), which enables high-energy resolution PIXE analysis using a microbeam. In order to improve the detection efficiency for the low energy X-rays, the X-ray entrance window of the PSPC was replaced with a thin polymer film supported by a metal grid. As the result, the detectable energy range was extended to carbon K X-rays and chemical effect in Fe and Cu L X-rays could be detected. A preliminary result of high-energy resolution PIXE mapping of Cu mesh (#500) showed that it is possible to obtain the Cu L mapping image using a 2 MeV proton microbeam with the size of 20 × 20 μm.