Wish List for PFE Features

[SXFiveFEJohn]

No. If my memory was good, your suggestion would work. But if I don't remember, then it doesn't. So a check doesn't hurt.

[John Donovan]

Hi John,
I must be missing something because I really don't understand the problem. And besides I need to be sure of making changes such as this, because adding "nuisance messages" will raise the ire of more than one user. You say above:

...but if the old brain cells aren't firing quickly enough, I forget to immediately reset the operating conditions in the new file before I start peaking, and the PfE does what you've programmed it to do, it changes the column back to 15 kV, and we have to then spend many minutes realigning the instrument.

But it seems to me that if you load a file setup from the previous run, you will already have the default keV set where you want it.  Or just click the Read Conditions button before starting a peaking method.

As for the situation above where you've spent "many minutes aligning the instrument", and you forget to change the default keV for a new run,  the easy cure is to just remember to save the column conditions to a .PCC file after performing a column alignment, so that you can recall all that effort with a couple of mouse clicks in the event that you change something accidentally later on.  Just learn to save a .PCC file every time you re-align the column.  I save a .PCC file after I align the column on my instrument, and also when I re-saturate the filament (at least you don't have to do that on your instrument!).  Hey that reminds me, has Cameca fixed the gun problems you were having last year on your FEG?

Alternatively you could set the UseCurrentConditionsAlways keyword in the Probewin.ini file and then it will simply use the current conditions in the instrument.

I'm really not trying to be difficult, but why do we need to burden every user with such nuisance dialogs every time the keV changes?  Just one example, this would be a real problem for multi voltage analysis for thin film characterization for example where the keV is constantly changing.

I think a better solution would be to attach a note to the computer screen to remind you to save the column conditions when the "old brain cells aren't firing quickly enough"...
john

[Mike Matthews]

Hi John,

I'm just analysing some Uranium stuffed full with U-carbides (heterogeneous, lots of big ZAF corrections - the perfect sample!). I've analysed the U but want to try specifying the U content instead, so I disable the quant for U in the Analyze! window and try to specify U but the software won't let me, saying I can't specify a content for a measured element. Can you change this? After all, if I've disabled the quant I'm fixing its value as zero so why can't I fix it as some other value?

Mike

[John Donovan]

I'm just analysing some Uranium stuffed full with U-carbides (heterogeneous, lots of big ZAF corrections - the perfect sample!). I've analysed the U but want to try specifying the U content instead, so I disable the quant for U in the Analyze! window and try to specify U but the software won't let me, saying I can't specify a content for a measured element. Can you change this? After all, if I've disabled the quant I'm fixing its value as zero so why can't I fix it as some other value?

Hi Mike, I'll take a look at this. Please give me a few days.

[John Donovan]

I'm just analysing some Uranium stuffed full with U-carbides (heterogeneous, lots of big ZAF corrections - the perfect sample!). I've analysed the U but want to try specifying the U content instead, so I disable the quant for U in the Analyze! window and try to specify U but the software won't let me, saying I can't specify a content for a measured element. Can you change this? After all, if I've disabled the quant I'm fixing its value as zero so why can't I fix it as some other value?

Hi Mike,
I did a quick test and it works for me.   We must be doing something differently.

I did this in demo mode (not using using the Penepma simulation mode which finds all sorts of off-peak issues that I didn't want to spend time dealing with... by the way in case anyone doesn't know, one can revert back to the "simple" simulation mode in PFE by unchecking the Use Penepma For WDS Simulation checkbox in the Acquisition Options dialog in the Acquire! window).

So I added UO2 and graphite standards to the run, ran each standard and then created an unknown which the software then generates a random uranium carbon composition for and the analysis of that unknown is here:

Un    2 unknown sample, Results in Elemental Weight Percents
 
ELEM:        U       C
TYPE:     ANAL    ANAL
BGDS:      LIN     LIN
TIME:    10.00   10.00
BEAM:    30.00   30.00

ELEM:        U       C   SUM 
     4  26.741  72.810  99.551

AVER:   26.741  72.810  99.551
SDEV:     .000    .000    .000
SERR:     .000    .000
%RSD:      .00     .00
STDS:       15     506

I then went to the Analyze! window, clicked Elements/Cations and disabled quant for the uranium channel, then clicked an empty row in that sample to add uranium as a specified element.  That gets me this analysis:

Un    2 unknown sample, Results in Elemental Weight Percents
 
ELEM:        U       C       U
TYPE:     ANAL    ANAL    SPEC
BGDS:      LIN     LIN
TIME:      ---   10.00     ---
BEAM:      ---   30.00     ---

ELEM:      U-D       C       U   SUM 
     4     ---  62.998    .000  62.998

AVER:      ---  62.998    .000  62.998
SDEV:      ---    .000    .000    .000
SERR:      ---    .000    .000
%RSD:      ---     .00     .00
STDS:      ---     506     ---

Then I specified uranium by difference as got this:

Un    2 unknown sample, Results in Elemental Weight Percents
 
ELEM:        U       C       U
TYPE:     ANAL    ANAL    DIFF
BGDS:      LIN     LIN
TIME:      ---   10.00     ---
BEAM:      ---   30.00     ---

ELEM:      U-D       C       U   SUM 
     4     ---  72.904  27.096 100.000

AVER:      ---  72.904  27.096 100.000
SDEV:      ---    .000    .000    .000
SERR:      ---    .000    .000
%RSD:      ---     .00     .00
STDS:      ---     506     ---

Then I removed the element by difference and specified 27% uranium as a specified concentration and got this:

Un    2 unknown sample, Results in Elemental Weight Percents
 
ELEM:        U       C       U
TYPE:     ANAL    ANAL    SPEC
BGDS:      LIN     LIN
TIME:      ---   10.00     ---
BEAM:      ---   30.00     ---

ELEM:      U-D       C       U   SUM 
     4     ---  72.873  27.000  99.873

AVER:      ---  72.873  27.000  99.873
SDEV:      ---    .000    .000    .000
SERR:      ---    .000    .000
%RSD:      ---     .00     .00
STDS:      ---     506     ---

So I don't see the problem but I'm sure you're seeing something.  Let's take this discussion off-line, but first you should update PFE, just to be sure you're not seeing something I've already fixed!   
john

[Mike Matthews]

Thanks John,

I hadn't added U back in as an extra, specified, element in Elements/Cations, I'd just tried disabling the U quant and going straight to Specified Concentrations .

[Ben Buse]

Hi,

What would be nice is in acquire window, under peak options - allow the PHA scan without running a peak scan.

So you can Peak and Bias scan. Then set the bias. Then run a base scan for all spectrometers without having to rerun the peak scan

What do you think?

Ben

[Karsten Goemann]

What would be nice is in acquire window, under peak options - allow the PHA scan without running a peak scan.

So you can Peak and Bias scan. Then set the bias. Then run a base scan for all spectrometers without having to rerun the peak scan

I second that!

[John Donovan]

What would be nice is in acquire window, under peak options - allow the PHA scan without running a peak scan.

So you can Peak and Bias scan. Then set the bias. Then run a base scan for all spectrometers without having to rerun the peak scan

I second that!

I can see the value of that. I'll have to look at the code to see how hard that might be...

[John Donovan]

What would be nice is in acquire window, under peak options - allow the PHA scan without running a peak scan.

So you can Peak and Bias scan. Then set the bias. Then run a base scan for all spectrometers without having to rerun the peak scan

I second that!

Hi Ben and Karsten,
Ok, so I let this idea (which is a good one), ferment around in the back of my mind for a few days and finally thought of a cool and easy way to do this.  To be honest I think Paul Carpenter asked for something like this a few years ago, but that the time I couldn't think of a nice way to implement it.

So the latest version of Probe for EPMA now has a new checkbox in the Peaking Options dialog as seen here:



So now one can acquire multiple spectrometer PHA only scans (for up to 72 elements), automatically on a sample from the Acquire! window. 

And from the Automate! window one can run multiple spectrometer PHA scans for multiple standards, also automatically. And on the primary standards, if those standards are assigned as primary standards for the current sample (or on any sample that has sufficient intensities for peaking or PHA scans).

And as usual with PFE, all scans (peaking or PHA) are saved to your run automatically...

Please update from the Help menu and let me know how it works for you all.

[Ben Buse]

Hi John,

That works great,

Thanks

Ben

[Anette von der Handt]

Hi,
Would it be possible to have an option in the "Plot!" window to plot all five spectrometer (or whatever was acquired) wavescans plotted simultaneously (but each in its own window), similar to the real-time wavescan acquisition or peaking window?

[John Donovan]

Hi,
Would it be possible to have an option in the "Plot!" window to plot all five spectrometer (or whatever was acquired) wavescans plotted simultaneously (but each in its own window), similar to the real-time wavescan acquisition or peaking window?

We could just reload the wavescan acquisition window with the already acquired intensity data, but may I ask where you eventually want to go with this feature?  Do you also want to display KLM markers, pick bgd positions, etc., etc.?

[Anette von der Handt]

Hi John,
Nothing fancy, more for teaching and training. When I was gazing at my running wavescans I thought it would be nice to get the same window back at a later time (and being able to export it to clipboard). So reloading the wavescan acquisition window is exactly what I am looking for.

[John Donovan]

Hi John,
Nothing fancy, more for teaching and training. When I was gazing at my running wavescans I thought it would be nice to get the same window back at a later time (and being able to export it to clipboard). So reloading the wavescan acquisition window is exactly what I am looking for.

Ok, let me look into it.