Energy-Dispersive X-Ray Analysis in the Electron Microscope

As we sit at the microscope with users, waiting for data to collect, we frequently find ourselves answering the same questions, time after time. The users need to know what their data tells them about the sample, how it should be interpreted or processed, or a myriad of other details about the experiment. At other times, we find ourselves explaining why a particular experiment cannot be performed, or, at least, why it is more complex than appears at first glance. Sometimes students need help describing these issues to their advisors. Others need the answers to very basic questions like ‘My advisor told me to do X-ray analysis...