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<p>[QUOTE=&quot;calcol, post: 8060637, member: 77639&quot;]The technique is muonic X-ray emission spectroscopy.&nbsp; Muons are subatomic particles which can penetrate metal to at least the thickness of coins.&nbsp; When muons interact with metal atoms, x-rays are produced that can be detected.&nbsp;&nbsp; The energy spectrum of the x-rays indicates which element is present.&nbsp; A muon beam can be played over a coin, and a map of metallic composition can be created.&nbsp; In addition, by adjusting the energy of the muon beam, different planes in the coin can be analyzed from surface to center.&nbsp;&nbsp; It’s essentially a CAT scan of the coin.</p><p><br /></p><p>Technique can be used for numismatic research on coin composition and also for counterfeit detection.&nbsp; Unlike XRF (x-ray fluorescence), it can go well beneath the surface … gold-plated tungsten would be immediately detected.&nbsp; And no, the coin is not damaged or made radioactive.</p><p><br /></p><p>The downside is that a particle accelerator is needed to produce the muon beam.&nbsp;&nbsp; These are very, very expensive.&nbsp; So for now, the technique will be primarily used for research.&nbsp; See the link.</p><p><br /></p><p>Cal</p><p><br /></p><p><a href="https://phys.org/news/2021-11-muonic-x-ray-emission-spectroscopy-roman.html" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="https://phys.org/news/2021-11-muonic-x-ray-emission-spectroscopy-roman.html" rel="nofollow">https://phys.org/news/2021-11-muonic-x-ray-emission-spectroscopy-roman.html</a>[/QUOTE]</p><p><br /></p>

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