Avantage data acquisition and processing software
The Avantage data system from Thermo VG Scientific is based upon the Windows NT™ operating system.

Data acquisition
Avantage controls all aspects of data acquisition, where appropriate, these include:
Sample alignment
The spectrometer and its associated lenses and detector
Monochromatic and non-monochromatic X-ray sources
Electron sources

Data processing
Avantage has a comprehensive set of data processing tools. All processing steps are recorded as an audit trail leading from the originally acquired data.

Sample alignment
The image from the system microscope can be displayed on the desktop. From this image, the positions for analysis can be selected.

Optical view of the specimen from which the analysis position can be selected. The line on the image shows the location of aline scan which is about to be acquired

The Experiment Tree
All of the experimental parameters can be controlled, in any combination, in a single experiment using the concept of the experiment “tree”. Sections of the Experiment Tree can be copied and pasted or imported from other experiments.

An example of an experiment tree

Data import
Avantage is able to directly open datafiles in a number of formats. Processed data files may be saved for future use in the Avantage data format.

Images
Avantage is able to process, in the same document, data in the form of spectra and images without any additional framestore hardware.

 

Presentation
Copy and Paste of spectra, images and numerical data to Third Party Software, such as Word Processing and Spreadsheets is quick and simple.

 

Processing System Requirements
The recommended minimum specification for a system to use Avantage for data processing is
        IBM Personal Computer with Pentium or equivalent class processor (PIII 500MHz or better is recommended)
        128MB RAM
Display resolution at least 1024x768 (pixel resolution) x 256 colours.
        21 inch monitor recommended
Windows XP Service Pack 2
Microsoft Internet Explorer
        CD-ROM drive for installation
        Microsoft Mouse or compatible pointing device
Avantage Processing Licence

Upgrading Older Instruments
A Processing Upgrade is available featuring
        Industry standard operating system for compatibility
        No additional hardware required for image processing
        Direct import of existing datafiles
        Simple Copy and Paste of data to other applications