Small area high purity germanium detectors for use in the energy range 100 eV to 100 keV

Abstract

Small area high purity germanium detectors have been used to detect X-rays in the energy range lOOeV to 100keV. Good spectrum line shapes have been achieved even at ultra-low energies. These detectors are intended for X-ray micro-analysis in electron microscopes where they offer the advantages of good high energy detection efficiency, lower noise and higher energy resolution compared to the conventional lithium drifted silicon detector.

Energy-Dispersive Spectrometry from Then until Now: A Chronology of Innovation

“…Later advances in crystal processing overcame this problem, and some HPGe detectors were installed, particularly on TEMs where its high-energy efficiency was needed. For a discussion of germanium detectors of the time, see Cox et al (1988).…”

A direct comparison of Ge and Si(Li) detectors in the 2-20 keV range

“…The results show that the ICC layers are of the order of 0.1 ~m for the Si(Li) detectors and 0.2 ~ for the HPGe detectors. These values are typical and have been reported in the literature previously [7][8][9]. It is emphasized thai the ICC layer thicknesses were measured in detectors with surface barrier contacts, and may not necessarily be representative of detectors with other types of contacts (e.g.…”