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Ee450l 06 EDAX

EDX analysis identifies the elemental composition of a specimen by bombarding it with an electron beam inside a scanning electron microscope. This causes the emission of characteristic X-rays from the specimen. The energy levels of the emitted X-rays are measured to identify the elements present, displayed as peaks on an EDX spectrum. EDX can only be performed when integrated with an SEM, as it analyzes X-rays generated by the SEM electron beam.

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28 views2 pages

Ee450l 06 EDAX

EDX analysis identifies the elemental composition of a specimen by bombarding it with an electron beam inside a scanning electron microscope. This causes the emission of characteristic X-rays from the specimen. The energy levels of the emitted X-rays are measured to identify the elements present, displayed as peaks on an EDX spectrum. EDX can only be performed when integrated with an SEM, as it analyzes X-rays generated by the SEM electron beam.

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EDAX (Energy Dispersive X-ray Analysis)

EDX Analysis stands for Energy Dispersive X-ray analysis. It is sometimes referred to also as
EDS or EDAX analysis. It is a technique used for identifying the elemental composition of the
specimen, or an area of interest thereof. The EDX analysis system works as an integrated
feature of a Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM), and can not operate on its own without the
latter.

During EDX Analysis, the specimen is bombarded with an electron beam inside the scanning
electron microscope. The bombarding electrons collide with the specimen atoms' own electrons,
knocking some of them off in the process. A position vacated by an ejected inner shell electron is
eventually occupied by a higher-energy electron from an outer shell. To be able to do so,
however, the transferring outer electron must give up some of its energy by emitting an X-ray.

The amount of energy released by the transferring electron depends on which shell it is
transferring from, as well as which shell it is transferring to. Furthermore, the atom of every
element releases X-rays with unique amounts of energy during the transferring process. Thus, by
measuring the amounts of energy present in the X-rays being released by a specimen during
electron beam bombardment, the identity of the atom from which the X-ray was emitted can be
established.

The output of an EDX analysis is an EDX spectrum (as shown in the Figure 1). The EDX
spectrum is just a plot of how frequently an X-ray is received for each energy level. An EDX
spectrum normally displays peaks corresponding to the energy levels for which the most X-rays
had been received. Each of these peaks are unique to an atom, and therefore corresponds to a
single element. The higher a peak in a spectrum, the more concentrated the element is in the
specimen.

Figure 1. EDAX Spectrum

An EDX spectrum plot not only identifies the element corresponding to each of its peaks, but the
type of X-ray to which it corresponds as well. For example, a peak corresponding to the amount
of energy possessed by X-rays emitted by an electron in the L-shell going down to the K-shell is
identified as a K-Alpha peak. The peak corresponding to X-rays emitted by M-shell electrons
going to the K-shell is identified as a K-Beta peak. (As shown in the Figure 2)

Figure 2. Atomic Shells

Figure 3 A photograph of the SEM – EPMA System

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