This award provides 50% of the funds required for the acquisition of an energy-dispersive X-ray spectrometer (EDS) system that is to be installed on the electron microprobe in the Department of Geological Sciences at Southern Methodist University. The University is committed to providing the remaining funds needed for the acquisition. The EDS system will allow rapid chemical mapping of element distribution in geological samples and will also serve to provide rapid preliminary semi-quantitative analyses. The enhanced micro- analytical capabilities of the electron microprobe system at SMU will be used by faculty and students in the geological sciences, anthropology, electrical engineering and other fields where micron- scale chemical analysis is required.
