BRIEF
INFORMATION
X-Ray Diffraction (XRD) is generally a specialized equipment for qualitative analysis for the confirmation or recognition of the presence of a phase (or phases) in a sample. This equipment can be likened to the fingerprint verification of a phase/sample in a specimen analyzed. For verification, the diffraction peaks will be compared with a PDF card (Powder Diffraction File) in a database regulated by the International Committee for Data Diffraction (ICDD) and updated annually.
For your information, XRD equipment owned and operated by the School of Materials Engineering is most suitable for the analysis of specimens/samples in powder form. Powder samples measuring in the range of 10 µm were the most suitable for analysis. Samples larger than that size are not recommended and may provide less accurate information. Therefore, the samples need to be crushed first either using a ball mill or for soft samples, the use of pestle and mortar may be more appropriate.
For solid samples, slight adjustments were made to the sample holder to enable the XRD equipment to analyze the samples. In practice, XRD results may only be suitable for the identification/confirmation of the phases present in the specimen. Systematic errors may occur that limit the accuracy of the analysis to be used for other purposes.
For thin-film specimens, XRD equipment is not suitable as it requires additional optional equipment that is not included in the package at the time of purchase. Based on observations on the XRD results of the specimens that have been analyzed previously, the data are irrelevant and not valid to be used for scientific purposes. This is because the X-ray penetration rate is higher than the thickness of the specimen which is defined as a thin-film. Exceptions may be given to thick-film specimens, where the thickness of the film must exceed the X-ray penetration rate. However, the XRD analysis method on the specimen will be operated as a powder specimen and not as a thin-film specimen.
