Patent ID: 7711088

Claim:
A method of reflective x-ray diffraction measurement of the crystal orientation of a sample, comprising: using a low power x-ray source, and detector, rigidly coupled together in a combination for coordinated rotation over the sample; using a polycapillary collimating x-ray optic coupled to the x-ray source to produce a parallel x-ray beam on the sample from the x-ray source; locating the sample in a sample movement path in and out of which the sample is moveable during measurement; taking reflective x-ray diffraction data at multiple, discrete and unique phi angles wherein the detector detects diffracted x-rays from the sample wherein the sample, and the source/detector combination are re-positioned relative to each other at each of said multiple phi angles, whereby said multiple phi angles are defined by a rotation, over a range of at least twenty degrees, about an axis projecting out of a surface of the sample; automatically rotating the source/detector combination relative to the sample to automatically achieve the multiple, discrete and unique phi angles; providing a pole figure representation. across said multiple phi angles, of said crystal orientation of the sample; and taking respective reflective x-ray diffraction data at respective discrete positions of the sample, automatically rotating the source/detector combination relative to the sample to automatically achieve multiple, discrete and unique phi angles at each discrete position, and providing a respective pole figure representation across said multiple phi angles for each discrete position.