X-ray microscopy with high-resolution zone plates: recent developments

Gerd Schneider; Thomas Wilhein; Bastian Niemann; P. Guttman; T. Schliebe; J. Lehr; H. Aschoff; Juergen Thieme; Dietbert M. Rudolph; Guenther A. Schmahl

doi:10.1117/12.221686

25 September 1995 X-ray microscopy with high-resolution zone plates: recent developments

Gerd Schneider, Thomas Wilhein, Bastian Niemann, P. Guttman, T. Schliebe, J. Lehr, H. Aschoff, Juergen Thieme, Dietbert M. Rudolph, Guenther A. Schmahl

Author Affiliations +

Proceedings Volume 2516, X-Ray Microbeam Technology and Applications; (1995) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.221686
Event: SPIE's 1995 International Symposium on Optical Science, Engineering, and Instrumentation, 1995, San Diego, CA, United States

Abstract

In order to expand the applications of x-ray microscopy, developments in the fields of zone plate technology, specimen preparation and imaging techniques have been made. A new cross- linked polymer chain electron beam resist allows us to record zone plate pattern down to 19 nm outermost zone width. High resolution zone plates in germanium with outermost zone widths down to 19 nm have been developed. In addition, phase zone plates in nickel down to 30 nm zone width have been made by electroplating. In order to enhance the image contrast for weak absorbing objects, the phase contrast method for x-ray microscopy was developed and implemented on the Gottingen x-ray microscope at BESSY. The effects of x ray absorption on the structure of biological specimen limits the maximum applicable radiation dose and therefore the achievable signal to noise ratio for an artifact-free x-ray image. To improve the stability especially of biological specimen, a cryogenic object chamber has been developed and tested. It turns out that at the operating temperature T less than or equal to 130 K unfixed biological specimen can be exposed to a radiation dose of 10⁹ - 10¹⁰ Gy without any observable structural changes. A multiple-angle viewing stage allows us to take stereoscopic images with the x-ray microscope, giving a 3D-impression of the object. As an example for the applications of x-ray microscopy in biology, erythrocytes infected by malaria parasite have been examined. Studies of the aggregation of hematite by sodium sulfate gives an example for the application of x-ray microscopy in the field of colloid research.

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Gerd Schneider, Thomas Wilhein, Bastian Niemann, P. Guttman, T. Schliebe, J. Lehr, H. Aschoff, Juergen Thieme, Dietbert M. Rudolph, and Guenther A. Schmahl "X-ray microscopy with high-resolution zone plates: recent developments", Proc. SPIE 2516, X-Ray Microbeam Technology and Applications, (25 September 1995); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.221686

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