Quantum Design UK and Ireland Welcomes ADVACAM to Its Imaging Portfolio

Advanced photon-counting detectors for X-ray imaging, particle tracking, materials analysis and non-destructive testing

Quantum Design UK and Ireland is pleased to announce that we are now supplying ADVACAM’s advanced photon-counting detectors and radiation imaging cameras to customers throughout the UK and Ireland.

Based on technology originally developed at CERN, ADVACAM detectors register and process individual particles of ionising radiation. Depending on the detector configuration, this can include X-rays, gamma rays, electrons, ions and neutrons.

The technology combines high sensitivity, high spatial resolution and fast acquisition with the ability to measure the energy deposited by each detected particle. This opens up capabilities that extend beyond conventional monochrome imaging, including spectral—or “colour”—X-ray imaging, material-sensitive inspection, particle identification and radiation tracking.

Where does ADVACAM fit within our portfolio?

ADVACAM expands the Quantum Design UK and Ireland imaging portfolio into photon-counting and energy-resolving radiation detection.

Our existing camera range enables customers to investigate samples and processes across multiple regions of the electromagnetic spectrum:

• InfraTec thermal cameras measure temperature and dynamic thermal behaviour.
• Specim hyperspectral cameras identify materials from their optical spectral signatures.
• Raptor Photonics cameras provide sensitive imaging across visible, SWIR and X-ray wavelengths.
• ADVACAM detectors count individual particles and add spatial, energy and—in selected systems—timing information.

This makes ADVACAM particularly relevant when researchers and engineers need to see inside an object, distinguish materials in an X-ray image, characterise a radiation field or track individual particles.

Rather than simply recording the total intensity reaching each pixel, a photon-counting detector processes individual events. The resulting data can reveal not only where radiation was detected, but also information about its energy and interaction with the sensor.

Three detector families for different applications

The ADVACAM range available from Quantum Design UK and Ireland includes the MiniPIX, WidePIX and AdvaPIX families.

MiniPIX: compact detection and particle tracking

MiniPIX cameras are compact, portable and low-power detectors suited to experiments where space, mobility or system integration is important.

Their small size allows them to be installed in confined spaces and incorporated into experimental equipment. Applications include:

• Particle tracking and radiation-field characterisation
• Space-weather monitoring
• X-ray diffraction
• Electron microscopy
• Research and education
• Integration into compact or portable instruments

The MiniPIX EDU also gives students the opportunity to visualise and study naturally occurring radiation, bringing particle physics out of the textbook and into the classroom or teaching laboratory.

WidePIX: large-area imaging for industry and NDT

WidePIX detectors provide a larger sensitive area for high-resolution scanning and industrial X-ray inspection.

They are particularly well suited to non-destructive testing, industrial computed tomography and spectral X-ray imaging. Potential applications include inspecting composites, welds, electronics and manufactured components, as well as material sorting, food inspection, mining, security and aerospace research.

The ability to create material-sensitive “colour” radiographs can help users distinguish features that may look similar in an ordinary greyscale X-ray image. This can provide additional information about composition while defects such as cracks, pores, delamination and inclusions are being identified.

AdvaPIX: speed and flexibility for demanding research

AdvaPIX is ADVACAM’s fast, modular detector platform for applications requiring high hit rates, precise timing or flexible detector configurations.

The range is suited to dynamic X-ray imaging, particle and ion tracking, beam characterisation, spectroscopic imaging and time-of-flight measurements. Applications extend across materials research, medical physics, proton and ion-beam research, radiography and non-destructive testing.

Building more complete experimental workflows

ADVACAM detectors can operate as stand-alone instruments or form part of a wider measurement system.

Within the Quantum Design UK and Ireland portfolio, they can complement:

• X-ray sources and imaging systems, providing photon-counting or spectral detection for radiography, computed tomography and materials analysis.
• X-ray microscopy and spectroscopy instrumentation, supporting experiments in which spatially resolved, energy-sensitive detection adds valuable compositional information.
• Electron microscopy workflows, where compact detectors can be used for electron or radiation imaging and experimental detector development.
• Non-destructive testing systems, combining ADVACAM X-ray imaging with thermal or hyperspectral inspection to examine different properties of the same component.
• High-speed and scientific cameras, allowing researchers to select the detector technology best matched to the radiation type, wavelength, speed and sensitivity required by an experiment.

This breadth is especially useful for multimodal inspection. A component might, for example, be examined using thermography to locate abnormal heat flow, hyperspectral imaging to identify surface materials and photon-counting X-ray imaging to reveal internal structure. Each technique supplies different information, helping researchers and inspection teams build a more complete understanding of the sample.

ADVACAM also develops custom detector solutions and can integrate its technology into existing equipment or OEM instrumentation. Quantum Design UK and Ireland can therefore help customers assess both standard camera models and application-specific configurations.

Applications across research and industry

The versatility of photon-counting detection makes ADVACAM technology relevant to a wide range of sectors, including:

• Aerospace and advanced composites
• Electronics and semiconductor inspection
• Materials science and mineral analysis
• Weld and component inspection
• X-ray diffraction and crystallography
• Biomedical and medical-physics research
• Particle-beam and radiation research
• Space science and radiation monitoring
• Security, food inspection and education

Across these applications, the principal advantages include digital particle counting in every pixel, spectral sensitivity, high-speed acquisition, 55 μm pixel pitch, compact construction and low power consumption.

Find the right ADVACAM detector for your application

Selecting a photon-counting detector involves more than choosing its physical size. The radiation type, energy range, count rate, required timing performance, sensor material and desired imaging area can all affect the best configuration.