Speaker
Mr
Amir Intisar
(School of Engineering and Design, Brunel University)
Description
We describe an instrument concept using Charge Coupled Devices (CCDs) capable of
simultaneously recording the X-ray diffraction (XRD) and X-ray fluorescence (XRF)
information from a sample. The instrument concept uses deep depletion CCDs in
photon counting mode which can efficiently detect X-rays from 0.5-10 keV. One such
instrument under study, named Mars-XRD, is a miniature XRD \ XRF instrument to be
used on the ESA Mars Rover planned for launch in 2011. The proposal explores the
possibility of using 4 CCDs tiled in a 130mm Rowland Circle covering the 3-60o
angular range. The main operation of this device is to perform XRD on mineral
samples for the purpose of phase identification, with the added capability of XRF
for chemical composition analysis. The application of FPGAs (Field programmable
Gate Arrays) for real time data analysis of CCD images is also discussed. Using
FPGAs, diffraction data from CCDs can be analyzed in real time, greatly reducing
the processing requirements of higher level software. Initial data from an early
prototype is presented.
Primary author
Mr
Amir Intisar
(School of Engineering and Design, Brunel University)
