External beam line
We have a focused external beam line for analysis of objects under ambient pressure conditions.
Overview
The External Beam Line at Surrey was commissioned in February 2004. The beam exits through a thin Si3N4window. It can be focused to about 10 microns in size and can be raster scanned across a sample.
The external beam line is useful for analysis of objects which are not compatible with vacuum i.e. they are:
- Too big
- Too fragile
- Too valuable to take samples
- Alive (e.g. plants or cells)
It has been used for non-destructive analysis of museum samples to:
- Investigate ancient technologies
- Provenance raw materials
- Study ancient environments and lifestyles
- Aid conservation studies.