Detector, atomic spectrometer ideal

These two-dimensional detectors [63] are ideally suited for coupling with an echelle spectrometer, which is state of the art in modem spectrometers for ICP atomic emission spectrometry as well as for atomic absorption spectrometers. As for CCDs the sensitivity is high and along with the signal-to-noise ratios achievable, they have become real alternatives to photomultipliers for optical atomic spectrometry (Table 3) and will replace them more and more. 

Much more sensitive and less time-consuming techniques such as mass spectrometry, atomic emission, and atomic absorption are needed for the analysis of pollutants. Detectors such as graphite furnace-atomic absorption spectrometer (GF-AAS), inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometer (ICP-MS), or inductively coupled plasma-atomic emission spectrometer (ICP-AES) seem to be ideal candidates for the analysis of trace metals because of their very low detection limits. The high temperatures used avoid the need for tedious digestions in many samples. FFF-gas chromatography-mass spectrometry could perhaps be used in the analysis of particular organic molecules. 

Recent developments, such as the windowless EDX detector, have allowed the light element range to be extended down to C. Automated WDX spectrometers with computer control of the operating parameters are now available, such as the Microspec WDX-2A system. This considerably simplifies WDX analysis. The ideal system, however, requires both an EDX and WDX system mounted on the microscope simultaneously. This would permit the rapid determination of the elements present with the EDX system, and a detailed analysis of these elements using the WDX spectrometer. Combined EDX/WDX systems have already been developed where components of the hardware are shared, such as a computer to perform corrections on the measured data for atomic number, absorption, and fluorescence effects. These corrections are necessary when performing quantitative analysis. 

---