External beam IBA set-up with large-area thin Si3N4 window

A compact external beam setup has been constructed for Particle Induced X-ray Emission (PIXE) and Nuclear Reaction (NRA) analyses. The key issue in the design has been to obtain a wide beam spot size with maximized beam current utilizing a thin Si3N4 exit window. The employed specific exit window support enables use of foils with thickness of 100 nm for a beam spot size of 4 mm in diameter. The durable thin foil and the large beam spot size will be especially important for the complementary external beam NRA measurements. The path between the exit foil and sample is filled with flowing helium to minimize radiation hazard as well as energy loss and straggling, and to cool the samples. For sample-independent beam current monitoring and irradiation fluence measurement, indirect charge integration, based on secondary electron current measurement from a beam profilometer, is utilized.