Influence of chemical bonding on X-ray spectra of different aluminium compounds

Five minerals containing aluminium in different crystal configurations are studied. The different kinds of chemical bonding between aluminium and oxygen originate molecular orbitals with energy levels and transition probabilities varying from one compound to another. This effect appears as shifts and changes in relative intensities of K alpha emission lines and as modifications of the K beta characteristic spectrum. In the present work, the aluminium K characteristic spectra obtained by means of an electron microprobe with a wavelength dispersive system are compared for topaz, albite, spodumene, biotite and corundum. (c) 2005 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.