Tips and Tricks for PFE quant

[John Donovan]

Sometimes we get requests for features that are already implemented, but "undiscovered"!

Someone recently asked "Is there a way to have the analysis output automatically after an acquisition?" and the answer is "yes", and here is where to find it:



Note the the software will ask you the first time:



so you'll want to make sure that your primary standards (and MAN/interference stds, etc.) are already acquired and assigned(!) before you activate this feature. Otherwise you'll get this error:



and your automation will halt.

Note also that this feature works for manual single point acquisitions from the Acquire! window and automated acquisitions from the Automate! window. Also note that if you have a link to an Excel spreadsheet opened, by using the this menu:



your results will also be sent to Excel after each analysis. See the other automatic output options in the Acquisition Options dialog from the Acquire! window.

[John Donovan]

A colleague asked how to change the standard assignments from the Analyze! window for multiple samples...

Start by selecting the samples that you want to change the standard assignments for:



Then click the Standard Assignments button and confirm the samples that you want to edit.  The selected sample indicates the basis for the elements to modify (in case different samples have different elements):



Then click the element you want to modify the standard assignments for.

Note that you can also utilize the text selection control to quickly select all samples, for example that contain the string "garnet", etc.:

https://smf.probesoftware.com/index.php?topic=42.msg8602#msg8602

[John Donovan]

This is a small thing but sometimes we need to add unanalyzed elements to our samples in order to calculate the complete matrix effects accurately:

https://smf.probesoftware.com/index.php?topic=92.0

For example, adding ZrSiO4 by difference when analyzing only traces in zircons, or carbon by stoichiometry when analyzing Ca, Mg, etc in carbonates.

Usually we can quickly change or add an element as an unanalyzed element by clicking the "Specified" option in the Elements/Cations dialog. But depending on whether the sample already contains data (you must make a new sample to add an analyzed (WDS) element), or you also have elements by EDS (where you can add an analyzed element even when the sample already contains data), these controls may or may not be enabled.

This is indicated by the tool tip help as seen here:



To add an unanalyzed element when EDS data is present (and these controls are disabled), you simply need to select the last x-ray selection, which is a blank as seen here:



Alternatively, one can also simply delete the x-ray line leaving it blank. That action tells the software that the element is not by EDS (or WDS), but is instead unanalyzed (or specified).