This is the true State-of-the-Art!
®

Ultra High Performance
Silicon Drift Detector

FAST SDD®

Amptek recently brought silicon wafer manufacturing in-house and improved the process. The result is a detector withlower noise, lower leakage current, better charge collection, and uniformity from detector to detector. This makes it the best
performing silicon drift detector available and the true state-of-the-art.
The FAST SDD® represents Amptek’s highest performance silicon drift detector (SDD), capable of count rates over
1,000,000 CPS (counts per second) while maintaining excellent resolution. The FAST SDD® is also available with our C-Series(Si3N4) low energy windows for soft x-ray analysis.

Features• 25 mm² active area collimated to 17 mm²• Also available 70 mm² collimated to 50 mm²• 122 eV FWHM resolution at 5.9 keV• Count rates > 1,000,000 CPS• High peak-to-background ratio – 26,000/1• Preamplifier Output Rise Time <35 ns• Windows: Be (0.5 mil) 12.5 µm, or C Series (Si3N4)• Radiation hard
• Detector thickness 500 µm• TO-8 Package• Cooling ΔT>85 K• Multilayer Collimator

COUNTS (Linear in Blue, Log in Black)

25 mm2 FAST SDD®

Applications• Ultra-fast benchtop and handheld XRF analyzers• Scanning/mapping of samples in an SEM as part ofan EDS system• On-line process control• X-Ray Sorting Machines• OEM

Peak to 1 keV background
26,000:1• Lower noise  Better resolution down to 122 eV FWHM
• Lower leakage current  Higher temperature operation (save battery life)• Better charge collection  Better photopeak shape (no tailing)• Quality  Detectors have consistent performance allowing for easier calibrationsOverview
Unlike our conventional SDDs which use a junction gate field-effect transistor (JFET)
inside the hermetically sealed TO-8 package, along with an external preamplifier, theFAST SDD uses a complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor (CMOS) preamplifier inside
the TO-8 package, and replaces the JFET with a metal-oxide-semiconductor field-effecttransistor (MOSFET). This significantly reduces capacitance, providing much lower seriesnoise and yielding improved resolution at very short peaking times. The FAST SDD® uses
the same detector but with a preamplifier giving lower noise at short peaking times. Improved (lower) resolution enables isolation/separation of fluorescent X-rays with close energy values where peaks would otherwise overlap, permitting users better identification
all of the elements in their sample(s). Short peaking times also yield significant improvements in count rates; more counts provide better statistics.

AMPTEK INC.

Amptek.sales@ametek.com

Mn Kβ

122 eV FWHM

Energy (keV)

The True State-of-the-Art

www.amptek.com

Tpk = 4 µs
Mn Kα

Specifications
GeneralLong-term Storage 10+ years in dry environment

Detector TypeSilicon Drift Detector (SDD) with CMOS
preamplifier

Detector Size

25 mm² - collimated to 17 mm²
Also available 70 mm² - collimated to50 mm²

Silicon Thickness

500 µmCollimatorInternal Multilayer Collimator (ML)

Energy Resolution 122 - 129 eV FWHM at 4 µs peaking@ 5.9 keV (55Fe)
time (guaranteed)
Peak to Background20000:1 (ratio of counts from 5.9 keV to1 keV) (typical)

Detector Window
Options

Beryllium (Be): 0.5 mil (12.5 µm or 0.3mil (8 µm)
C Series (Si3N4) Low energy windows

Charge SensitivePreamplifier

CMOS

Gain Stability<20 ppm/°C (typical)

Size
Detector Module TO-8 package (0.640 in. high including
pins, 0.600 in. diameter)
XR100 Box 3.00 x 1.75 x 1.13 in (7.6 x 4.4 x 2.9 cm)
X-123 Box 3.94 x 2.67 x 1.0 in (10.0 x 6.78 x 2.54 cm)
OEM Configurations vary
WeightDetector Module
XR100 Box
X-123 BoxOEM

0.14 ox (4.1 g)
4.4 oz (125 g)
6.3 oz (180 g)
Configurations vary

Total Power<2 Watt

Warranty Period

1 YearDevice Lifetime

Typical 5 to 10 years, depending on useOperation conditions-35°C to +80°C

Typical Storage &Shipping-40°C to +85°C, 10 to 90% humidity
noncondensing
TUV Certification
Certificate #: CU 72072412 02
Tested to: UL 61010-1: 2004 R7 .05
CAN/CSA-C22.2 61010-1: 2004

XR-100SDD Inputs
Preamp Power

XR100 configuration: ±8 V @ 15 mA
with no more than 50 mV peak-topeak noise
OEM configuration (PA210/230 orX-123): ±5 V

Detector Power-100 to -180 V @ 25 µA, very stable<0.1% variation

Cooler Power
Current 450 mA maximum
Voltage 3.5 V maximum with <100 mV peak-topeak noise
Note: The XR-100SDD includes its own temperature controller

Outputs
Preamplifier
Sensitivity 3.6 mV/keV typical (may vary for different detectors)
Polarity Positive signal output (1 kΩ max. load)
Feedback Reset
Temperature Mon- Varies with configuration
itor Sensitivity
When used with PX5, DP5, or X-123:
direct reading in Kelvin through software.
Preamplifier Output Rise Time<35 ns

Detector Geometry
Detector Area/Thickness Rdet
Adet
Rcoll
Acoll
Lcoll
Lcoll
Type(mm) (mm2) (mm) (mm2) (mm) (mm)SDD25 mm2/500 µm 2.82

25.0

2.33

17.00.91.4

Si-PIN

6 mm2/500 µm

1.38

6.0

1.19

4.4

1.01.7

Si-PIN

13 mm2/500 µm 2.03

13.0

1.88

11.1

1.01.7

Si-PIN

25 mm2/500 µm 2.82

25.0

2.62

21.5

1.0

1.7

Performance
Resolution vs Peaking Time

Typical Performance Characteristics

Resolution

Peaking Time124 eV FWHM

4 µs

126 eV FWHM

1 µs

139 eV FWHM

0.2 µs160 eV FWHM

0.05 µs

Resolution vs. Input Counts Rate (ICR) for
Various Peaking Times for FAST SDD.

Shaping Time in Analog Systems (µs)

Typical Resolution (eV FWHM @ 5.9 keV)

240

Si-PIN
25 mm2

220

Si-PIN
13 mm2200
180

Si-PIN6 mm2160SDD
25 mm214012005FAST SDD®
25 mm2 and 70 mm2101520Peaking Time (µs)

2530Energy Resolution and Count Rate: This plot shows how the energy resolution at 5.9 keV is related to the output count rate for Amptek’s X-ray detectors, as a function of the pulse shaping time and the equivalent peaking
time in a digital processor. These are typical values at full cooling (220K).
For example, at a Tpeak of 9.6 microseconds (equivalent to 4.0 microsecond
pulse shaping time) the output count rate at 50% dead time is 18 kcps.
This is a function only of the pulse processing so is the same for all detectors. The energy resolution for a 6 mm2 Si-PIN is just under 160 eV FWHM
while for a 25 mm2 SDD it is 130 eV FWHM.

Energy resolution, efficiency, and X-ray energy: This plot shows how the intrinsic
efficiency (top) and energy resolution (bottom) depend on the X-ray energy.
In the bottom plot, the black curve represents “Fano broadening”, the theoreticallimit with a Si based detectors, arising from quantum fluctuations in the charge
production process. The colored curves represent the combination of Fano broadening and intrinsic electronic noise under optimum conditions (full cooling andlong peaking time). The detector selection is most important at the lowest energies because Fano broadening dominates at high enough energies.
In the top plot, the efficiency at low energies is determined by transmission
through the window and detector dead layer. The efficiency at high energies isdetermined by attenuation in the active depth of the detector. A Si detector withBe window is recommended between about 2 and 30 keV. A Si detector with a C1or C2 window is recommended at lower energies, while a CdTe detector is best atenergies above 30 keV.

Application Spectra
The below table displays the quantitative analysis of the datafrom the figure at left.
Element

Certified Concentration Fast SDD® Result in 1 s

V

0.05

0.16 ± 0.28

Cr

18.45

18.32 ± 0.80

Mn

1.63

0.40 ± 0.55

Fe64.51

65.89 ± 1.64

Co0.100.00 ± 0.40

Ni

12.18

12.56 ± 0.47

Cu0.170.19 ± 0.02Mo2.38

2.34 ± 0.08

Configurations
X-123FASTSDD®

Complete X-Ray Spectrometer Includes:
1 Silicon Drift Detector and Preamplifier
2 Digital Pulse Processor and MCA
3 Power Supply

FASTSDD® Vacuum Applications

OEM FASTSDD®

XR-100FASTSDD®

The FAST SDD with its preamplifier isavailable in several OEM configurations

X-Ray Detector and Digital Pulse
Processor with MCA

Experimenter’s XRF Kit with FASTSDD®
Complete XRF System Includes:
X-123SDD Complete Spectrometer
Mini-X USB Controlled X-Ray Tube
XRF-FP Quantitative Analysis Software
Test stand with shielding and sample enclosure®

AMPTEK INC. 14 DeAngelo Drive, Bedford, MA 01730-2204 USA+1 781 275-2242 Amptek.sales@ametek.com

www.amptek.com