Polychromatic X-ray source for diffraction apparatus using _polychromatic X-rays

A polychromatic X-ray source used in a polychromatic X-ray diffraction apparatus, in which polychromatic X-rays are cast along a beam path upon a sample to be analyzed, the energies of the X-rays diffracted from the crystallographic planes of said sample are measured and the physical properties of said sample are detected on the basis of the measured energies, said polychromatic X-ray source comprising:

• a container made of radiation shielding material and having an X-ray outlet channel through which the beam path passes;
• a radionuclide contained in said container so as to emit radioactive primary rays;
• target means mounted in said container so as to intercept the emitted rays from said radionuclide and thereby emit polychromatic secondary X-rays into said channel by acattering and absorbing said primary rays emitted from said radionuclide, said target means being a substance that scatters said radioactive primary rays emitted from said radionuclide through a Compton effect to produce polychromatic X-rays;
• radiation shielding means for opening and closing said channel to the passage of rays traveling along said beam path toward said sample;
• and
• Soller slit means in said beam path disposed in the vicinity of the outer end of said channel for collimating said polychromatic secondary X-rays along said beam path.