FUNDAMENTALS OF X-RAY FLUORESCENCE - Total-Reflection X-Ray Fluorescence Analysis and Related Methods - page 14

Figure1.7. Instrumental arrangement for (a) conventional XRF and (b) TXRF. Comparison
shows a difference in the geometric grouping of excitation and detection units. Figure from Ref. [8],
reproduced with permission. Copyright1996, John Wiley and Sons.
layers in the range of 1-500 nm. The method is nondestructive and needs no
vacuum—at least no ultrahigh vacuum (UHV).
In spite of the similarities in instrumentation, such as the X-ray source, the
energy-dispersive detector, and pulse-processing electronics, the use of TXRF
differs fundamentally from classical XRF. With respect to sample preparation
and performance of analysis, it has a lot in common with AAS or ICP for trace
element analysis and it is similar to X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS),
Rutherford backscattering spectroscopy (RBS), and secondary ion mass spec-
trometry (SIMS) for surface and near-surface layer analysis. In fact, TXRF is
able to compete, often favorably, with these well-established methods.