Conclusions
As known, polycapillary optics can provide high X-ray flux into a
small spot size, reducing the exposure times for the analysis of small
samples. Such a capability is ideal for a number of applications, in particular,
it allows us to overcome some of the main issues of laboratory
X-ray instruments, including the portable units. The peculiar capability
of polycapillary optics to obtain a powerful quasi-parallel beam from a
divergent source can provide the possibility of elemental spectroscopy
analysis by TXRF even for very low concentration samples. The results
are in good agreement with the data obtained at SR facilities, especially
at low energies up to Fe K-line. According to the results, we assert that
conventional and more accessible X-ray sources, combined with
polycapillary optics, could be a valuable alternative tool for SR-TXRF—
one for low-concentration elemental analysis.