Effect of grain size on stability of X-ray diffraction patterns used for threat detection

Energy Dispersive X-ray Diffraction (EDXRD) is well-suited to detecting narcotics and a wide range of explosives. The integrated intensity of an X-ray diffraction peak is proportional to the number of grains in the inspected object which are oriented such that they satisfy Bragg's condition. Several parameters have a significant influence on this number. Among them, we can list grain size and the fill rate for polycrystalline materials that both may significantly vary for a same material according to its way of production. Consequently, peak intensity may change significantly from one measurement to another one, thus increasing the risk of losing peaks. This instability is one of the many causes of false alarms. To help avoid these, we have developed a model to quantify the stability of the diffraction patterns measured. Two methods (extension of the detector in a direction perpendicular to the diffractometer plane and slow rotation of both source and detector) can be used to decrease the coefficient of variation, leading to a more stable spectral measurement.