The x-ray color camera microscope—A combined x-ray diffraction and fluorescence analysis instrument suitable for lab and synchrotron use

X-ray spectroscopy has been among the most important and precise material characterization techniques for multiple decades, with a wide range of applications from material sciences to medical research or cultural heritage. With the rising capabilities of laboratory x-ray sources and novel detectors, new techniques become possible. The x-ray Color Camera Microscope combines a state-of-the-art laboratory source with a large, pixelated energy dispersive pnCCD detector, where every pixel yields an independent energy spectrum. In addition, it can be used at a synchrotron as well, in case higher flux is needed. The full beam path is in vacuum and the detector completely unshielded, guaranteeing the detection of low energy photons and effectively minimizing parasitic background scattering and absorption. Very high scattering angles up to 70° can be reached by moving the detector very close to the sample, making it useful for a variety of techniques. Two techniques will be presented, both profiting from the special setup of the instrument. Full-field fluorescence imaging can yield a spatially resolved elemental map of a sample without the need of scanning it with a microscopic beam. Energy dispersive Laue diffraction uses a polychromatic beam and allows three-dimensional crystallographic data of a sample to be obtained in a single shot. With the above options and the possibility of other techniques, the x-ray Color Camera Microscope becomes a versatile energy dispersive x-ray imaging instrument for use in the laboratory and at synchrotrons.