PIGE is part of nuclear reaction analysis (NRA) technique. Nuclear reactions of the incident ion with the nucleus of the target atom emit photons (gamma-rays) or charged particles. PIGE only measures the gamma-rays and is of high interest for the detection of low-Z elements. Some low-Z elements can also be detected by PIXE but the information depth is deeper for PIGE. Elemental maps can be recorded to display the distribution of elements.
Fields of application
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Cultural heritage
archaeological object and site, architecture, art, decorative arts, demo anthropologic object, film, manuscript, mosaics, musical instrument, other, painting, papyrus, photo, sculpture, textile
Materials
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inorganic
glass, stone, metal and metallurgical By-Products, parchment, ceramic (clay, mud brick, terracotta, earthenware, stoneware, porcelain), pigment
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organic
wood, paper, textiles
TOOLS
The Oxford type scanning nuclear microprobe is operated at one of the beamlines of our particle accelerator. The beam diameter is about 1-3 microns for the usual applications in vacuum. The microprobe is equipped with a 5-axis goniometer (X-Y-Z translations and two rotations, to move the sample into the required position), optical microscope, cameras and...
Provider
Ion Beams LaboratoryContact person
Angela Middleton
Type and energy of particles: protons or deuterons from 1 to 4MeV or Alphas from 2 to 6MeV for Alphas. Beam size: down to 20µm. Single spot or mapping on areas up to cm²-sized area (max 20x20cm²). PIGE system: HPGe detector. Limits of detection : down to 100ppm regarding the elements