Secondary X-rays emitted from foils upon transmission

Abstract

Relative intensities of secondary X-rays induced by an isotope source in Fe and Cu foils with different thicknesses have been measured upon transmission through a foil using a Si(Li) detector. The experi-mental results indicate that (1) the intensity of secondary X-rays was raised with the increase of the foil’s thickness, which ranged from 5×10−6 to 1×10−4 m; (2) the higher Z the foil material had, the more characteristic X-rays would be excited from them; and (3) the intensity of secondary X-rays was related to the activity and energy of the excitation source, as well as the way of foil’s formation. The ‘model of effective neighboring excitation’ has been suggested. The calculation of elemental Cu based on the model described earlier agrees well with experimental data.