Background corrections for quantitative electron microprobe analysis using a lithium drifted silicon X-ray detector

The rather broad peaks obtained with a Si(Li) detector often necessitate extrapolation of background over a considerable energy range. In many samples no background readings free of interference from peaks can be obtained below 2.7 keV. A procedure for calculating background over the whole spectrum for measurements at 2.96 keV (Ar K alpha ) and 9.87 keV (Ge K alpha ) is described. For samples consisting of elements below 30 in atomic number the background correction can be determined with an error not exceeding an equivalent concentration of 0.1 wt %.