Electronics and Instrumentation for X‐Ray Fluorescence

The measurement of the X-ray fluorescence (XRF) spectrum (spectroscopy) represents a very versatile tool to analyze the elemental composition of materials. XRF spectroscopy can be performed in two ways: energy dispersive or wavelength dispersive. The most relevant ones for XRF spectroscopy are natural radioactive decays, bremsstrahlung, and synchrotron radiation. This chapter focuses on semiconductor detectors which are the most consolidated solution for XRF instrumentation, thanks to the combination of compactness, robustness, and state-of-the-art spectroscopic performance. The planar geometry of a semiconductor detector can be adapted to the requirements of the specific application. The role of the readout electronics is to convert the packet of charge generated in the semiconductor, whose amount is proportional to the energy of the impinging X-ray photon, into an electrical signal that can be acquired and processed by an elaboration system. The processing of events can be performed in analog as well as in the digital domain