Development of a Compact XRF System for Elemental Analyses of Archaeological Objects

Abstract

Abstract We have developed a compact gamma-ray beam based on a beam collimator using a lead tube for X-ray fluorescence (XRF) systems. A 59.5-keV gamma-ray from 241Am radioactive source was collimated by a lead tube for excitation of the sample. The spot size of the excited beam was examined experimentally by using a wire scanning method. The elemental compositions of the surface layer of pieces of Sangkhalok and Ban Chiang pottery were investigated using this system. By exciting pieces of the pottery with a gamma-ray beam, the X-ray spectra of the surface layer of the pottery were successfully obtained. The paint and substrate positions of the pottery were separately excited and the X-ray fluorescence spectra of the pottery were collected by a CdTe diode X-ray detector. We were able to develop a compact XRF system and present preliminary results of the elemental compositions of the surface layers of the pottery which clearly showed the differences between paint patterns and substrate positions.