comparison of the performance and energy resolution of CdTe and Si detectors in the X-ray Fluorescence studies of metal samples and Alloys

X-ray fluorescence provides a powerful means of non-destructively determining the elemental composition of a sample. X-rays from a Molybdenum (Mo) source was fired on copper, molybdenum, lead, steel and brass samples to determine their composition and relative abundance of their constituent elements. Two different detectors: the Cadmium Telluride (CdTe) and Silicon(Si) detectors were used to pick up the signals from the scattering of the X-rays at the sample surfaces and their energy resolutions as well as efficiencies were compared. With a non-noisy amplifier, the Si detector had a higher resolution (0.27 % ) when compared to the 0.38 % for the CdTe detector but it had a lower efficiency when compared to that of the CdTe detector. It was also discovered that higher energies produced lower detector efficiencies.