EPMA Events (Meetings, Workshops, Seminars...)

[John Donovan]

Attached below (login to see attachments) are the presentation PDF files for both Anette's (PictureSnap and PictureSnapApp) and my (Trace Element Analysis) presentations.

[John Donovan]

I found this M&M poster from 2019 that Anette and I presented at that meeting, in case anyone is interested:

"Improved EPMA Analysis of Beam Sensitive Materials by a Combined Mapping and Time Dependent Intensity Correction Approach"

See attached below (remember to login to see attachments).

[John Donovan]

Attached below (login to see attachments) is the PDF file of my Modeling and Correction of Secondary Boundary Fluorescence Effects given today at the Athens 2025 EPMA Workshop.

[Owen Neill]

Dear colleagues,

Apologies for any cross-postings, but please find attached the announcement for the 9th Congress of the International Union of Microbeam Analysis Societies (IUMAS-9), taking place 31 May - 6 June, 2026 in Xi'an, China. This meeting will take place in conjunction with the Chinese EPMA Annual Meeting in Earth Sciences (CEAMES). The IUMAS-9 meeting will cover a wide range of topics related to microbeam analysis technology and the applications in fields as geology, materials science, and life sciences.

Plenary speakers will include:

• Dr. Raynald Gauvin, McGill University, Montreal, Canada
• Dr. Zonghoon Li, Ulsan National Institute of Science and Technology, Ulsan, Republic of Korea
• Dr. Philippe Pinard, Oxford Instruments, High Wycombe, United Kingdom
• Dr. Toshiaki Tanigaki, Hitachi, Ltd., Hatoyama, Japan
• Dr. Rucheng Wang, Nanjing University, Nanjing, China
• Dr. Nick Wilson, CSIRO, Clayton, Australia

Abstract submission is open and will close on 31 January, 2026. Meeting registration will conclude on 31 March, 2026. More information about abstract submission, meeting registration, lodging and travel may be found at this website. We hope you will be able to attend!

[Probeman]

I just wanted to mention the upcoming (next week) Athens 2026 EPMA (virtual) Workshop:

https://sites.google.com/view/epma-athens2026/workshop-programme

Here is a slide from my presentation on beam sensitive samples and how to correct for TDI effects.

[Probeman]

Attached below (you must login in to see attachments) is a pdf of my presentation on correction of beam sensitive materials on the EPMA for quantitative point analyses and x-ray maps for the Athens EPMA Workshop 2026.

Let me know if you have any questions. Some existing topics on these methods are found here:

https://smf.probesoftware.com/index.php?topic=11.0

https://smf.probesoftware.com/index.php?topic=116.0

[John Donovan]

Here's the announcement for the M&M 2026 "SEM, EPMA, WDS, EDS Best Practices for Quantitative Microanalysis" to be held on Sunday, August 2nd in Milwaukee, Wisconsin:



https://mmconference.microscopy.org/SSC_X13

Topics will include:

Introduction to SEM/EPMA best practices, major, minor and trace elements

Introduction to EDS with standards, sample navigation, point/area re-location on other instruments

Designing analytical strategies, setups, standard selection, WDS, and EDS spectrometer choices, analyzed vs. unanalyzed elements

Correction of data, e.g., background, dead time, intensity/beam drift, matrix effects, low Z elements (peak shape/shift effects)

Correction of artifacts, e.g., spectral interferences, blank corrections, beam sensitive samples/carbon contamination, secondary boundary fluorescence

Quantitative mapping

Analytical output, display/plotting, detection limits, reporting

and much, much more with live discussion throughout the day!

[John Donovan]

Just a note regarding the M&M 2026 Sunday EPMA/SEM short course with more information:

M&M 2026 Short course schedule, Sunday August 2nd
1. Introduction to EPMA best practices, major, minor and trace elements

2. Designing analytical strategies, element/sample/file setups, standard selection, WDS and EDS spectrometer choices, analyzed vs. unanalyzed elements

Break

3. Sample prep, instrument stability, Calibration procedures for WDS and EDS with standards, sample/standard navigation, point/area re-location and automation strategies

4. Correction of data, e.g., dead time, intensity/beam drift, backgrounds, matrix effects, low Z elements (peak shape/shift effects)

Lunch

5. Correction of artifacts, e.g., spectral interferences, blank corrections, beam sensitive samples/carbon contamination, secondary boundary fluorescence

6. Quantitative mapping, stage/beam, including interferences and high current quantification

Break

7. Analytical output, display/plotting, detection limits, reporting, data archiving, etc.

8. Discussion

Link is here:

https://mmconference.microscopy.org/SSC_X13

[John Donovan]

We sent this out as a newsletter a week or so ago:

We are getting ready to send out our Spring 2026 newsletter but in the meantime we would like to share a couple of items, which we think everyone should see.

First if you ever perform WDS analysis you should see the new PHA tuning method that has been developed and tested, which is called the "integral-baseline" method.  This new method allows one to obtain 1% quantitative accuracy even when there are extreme count rate differences between the standard and the unknown:

https://smf.probesoftware.com/index.php?topic=1854.0

Basically, if you do NOT utilize this new integral-baseline PHA tuning method, you are generally *forced* to utilize a "matrix-matched" standard, or as it should actually be called: a "count rate matched" standard.  The problem with so-called "matrix matched" standards is that, for geologists at least, they are often natural materials of problematic heterogeneity. Not to mention they often have many inclusions and are becoming increasingly difficult to obtain, as they cannot be replicated.

However, by utilizing this new WDS integral-baseline PHA tuning method, one can now obtain 1% relative accuracy, even when the count rates between the standard and unknown differ by 10x or more.  Why is this good?  Because now we can utilize high purity, synthetic end member minerals as primary standards which will greatly improve accuracy. See the link above for more information.

Second, it should also be noted that there is the M&M Sunday short course on quantitative analysis, being offered in Milwaukee, Wisconsin on August 2, 2026.  The presenters are:

John Donovan, Probe Software
Glenn Poirier, Canadian Museum of Nature
Heather Lowers, US Geological Survey
Will Nachlas, University of Wisconsin-Madison
Joseph Robert Boro, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory
Paul Carpenter, Washington University
Anette von der Handt, British Columbia
Andrew Ducharme, University of York, UK

We will be discussing many topics of interest to EPMA and SEM, including:

Introduction to EPMA/SEM best practices, major, minor and trace elements

Designing analytical strategies, element/sample/file setups, standard selection, WDS and EDS spectrometer choices, analyzed vs. unanalyzed elements

Sample prep, instrument stability, Calibration procedures for WDS and EDS with standards, sample/standard navigation, point/area re-location and automation strategies

Correction of data, e.g., dead time, intensity/beam drift, backgrounds, matrix effects, low Z elements (peak shape/shift effects)

Correction of artifacts, e.g., spectral interferences, blank corrections, beam sensitive samples/carbon contamination, secondary boundary fluorescence

Quantitative mapping, stage/beam, including interferences and high current quantification

Analytical output, display/plotting, detection limits, reporting, data archiving, etc.

Please also note that this course is not just for beginners, as many intermediate and advanced methods will be discussed including methods to improve EPMA accuracy for major and minor elements such as the logarithmic dead time correction and the already mentioned integral-baseline PHA tuning method.  And of course we will discuss many other aspect of quantitative analysis for improving trace element accuracy as well. 

So if you care about EPMA/SEM accuracy at all, you really owe it to yourself to join us in Milwaukee on Sunday, August 2nd.

Regards,
The Probe Software Users Forum Team.