Mg/SiC multilayers have been selected to coat the primary and secondary mirrors of the SCORE (Sounding-rocket CORonagraphic Experiment) telescope, a part of the NASA HERSCHEL program. Their experimental reflectance at the He II 30.4 nm wavelength is twice as much that of standard Mo/Si multilayer coatings, with a large improvement of the instrument effective area. Nevertheless, their long-term stability still needs to be evaluated in order to consider them as a valuable candidate for instrumentation of a long term space mission. A study is carried out on different Mg/SiC samples designed and fabricated varying the structural parameters and/or the capping layer material and thickness, which have been monitored for four years after deposition.
A 4 mm diameter zone plate was calibrated in the 7 nm to 18.5 nm wavelength range using synchrotron radiation. The efficiency in the focused 1st order was measured using the scanning monochromator at the Naval Research Laboratory beamline X24C at the National Synchrotron Light Source. The measured efficiencies were compared to efficiencies calculated by accounting for the partial transmittance through the molybdenum zone plate rings and the resulting phase enhancement of the efficiencies. Accurate absolute efficiency calibrations enable the use of zone plates in EUV solar
irradiance monitors having excellent stability against contamination and oxidation.
Multilayers are artificially layered structures that can be used to create optics and optical elements for a broad
range of x-ray wavelengths, or can be optimized for other applications. The development of next generation x-ray
sources (high brightness synchrotrons and x-ray free electron lasers) requires advances in x-ray optics. Newly
developed multilayer-based mirrors and optical elements enabled efficient band-pass filtering, focusing and time
resolved measurements in recent FLASH (Free Electron LASer in Hamburg) experiments. These experiments are
providing invaluable feedback on the response of the multilayer structures to high intensity, short pulsed x-ray sources.
This information is crucial to design optics for future x-ray free electron lasers and to benchmark computer codes that
simulate damage processes.
The extreme ultraviolet (EUV) optical constants δ(ω) and β(ω) of amorphous carbon were determined on the basis of
transmission measurements at hω=18-450 eV, the first-principles calculation of the dielectric tensor at hω<25 eV, and
the Kramers-Kronig calculation of δ(ω). Our optical constants generally agree with the CXRO data, excluding the
vicinity of the K-edge. First-principles analysis shows that two thresholds of absorption (at 284 eV and 291 eV) found in
the present study are caused, respectively, by the π- and σ- bonds. Their weights are controlled by an orientation of
graphene sheets in a-carbon.
A novel technique, utilizing thin films with protective capping layers deposited onto silicon photodiode substrates, has been developed to accurately determine the optical constants of reactive elements such as the rare earths and transition metals. Depositing protected layers on photodiode substrates has three primary advantages over the study of the transmittance of free-standing films and the angle-dependent reflectance of coatings on mirror substrates. First, it is easy to deposit a thin protective capping layer that prevents oxidation or contamination of the underlying reactive layer. Second, very thin layers of materials that have intrinsically low transmittance can be studied. Third, the optical constants are determined from the bulk properties of the protected layer and are not influenced by reflectance from the top surface that can be affected by oxidation or contamination. These and other benefits of this technique will be discussed, and results for La and Tb will be presented. The determined optical constants are significantly different from the CXRO and other tabulated values. The rare earth (lanthanide) elements with atomic numbers 57-71 have 5d or 4f open shells, and this open shell structure results in transmission windows in the extreme ultraviolet wavelength range >45 nm where materials typically have low transmittance. These transmission windows make possible the fabrication of a new class of multilayer interference coatings, based on rare earth elements, with relatively high peak reflectances and narrow reflectance profiles, both important factors for the imaging of solar and laboratory radiation sources with multilayer telescopes.
The diffraction efficiencies of a Fresnel zone plate (ZP), fabricated by Xradia Inc. using the electron-beam writing technique, were measured using polarized, monochromatic synchrotron radiation in the extreme ultraviolet wavelength range 3.4-22 nm. The ZP had 2 mm diameter, 3330 zones, 150 nm outer zone width, and a 1 mm central occulter. The ZP was supported by a 100 nm thick Si3N4 membrane. The diffraction patterns were recorded by CMOS imagers with phosphor coatings and with 5.2 μm or 48 μm pixels. The focused +n orders (n=1-4), the diverging -1 order, and the undiffracted 0 order were observed as functions of wavelength and off-axis tilt angle. Sub-pixel focusing of the +n orders was achieved. The measured efficiency in the +1 order was in the 5% to 30% range with the phase-shift enhanced efficiency occurring at 8.3 nm where the gold bars are partially transmitting. The +2 and higher order efficiencies were much lower than the +1 order efficiency. The efficiencies were constant when the zone plate was tilted by angles up to ±1° from the incident radiation beam. This work indicates the feasibility and benefits of using zone plates to measure the absolute EUV spectral emissions from solar and laboratory sources: relatively high EUV efficiency in the focused +1 order, good out-of-band rejection resulting from the low higher-order efficiencies and the ZP focusing properties, insensitivity to (unfocused) visible light scattered by the ZP, flat response with off-axis angle, and insensitivity to the polarization of the radiation based on the ZP circular symmetry. EUV sensors with Fresnel zone plates potentially have many advantages over existing sensors intended to accurately measure absolute EUV emission levels, such as those implemented on the GOES N-P satellites that use transmission gratings which have off-axis sensitivity variations and poor out-of-band EUV and visible light rejection, and other solar and laboratory sensors using reflection gratings which are subject to response variations caused by surface contamination and oxidation.
The optical constants (n, k) of the wavelength-dependent index of refraction N = n+ik = 1-δ+ik of Nd (Neodymium)
and Gd (Gadolinium) are determined in the wavelength range of 3 nm to 100 nm by the transmittance method using
synchrotron radiation. Nd and Gd films with thicknesses ranging from 5 nm to 180 nm were fabricated on Si
photodiodes (which served as the coating substrates as well as the detectors) and capped with Si layers to protect these
reactive rare earth elements from oxidation. The imaginary part (k) obtained directly from the transmittance
measurement is used in the derivation of the real part (δ) of the complex index of refraction N through the Kramers-
Kronig integral. The measured optical constants are used in the design of currently developed Nd- and Gd-based
multilayers for solar imaging applications. Our results on Nd and Gd optical constants and the reflectance of some Nd-
and Gd-based multilayers are presented.
We present experimental results on the development and testing of the extreme ultraviolet (EUV) reflective multilayer coatings that will be used in the Atmospheric Imaging Assembly (AIA) instrument. The AIA, comprising four normal incidence telescopes, is one of three instruments aboard the Solar Dynamics Observatory mission, part of NASA's Living with a Star program, currently scheduled for launch in 2008. Seven different multilayer coatings will be used, covering the wavelength region from 93.9 to 335.4 Å.
The responsivity of a SiC photodiode was measured with synchrotron radiation in the deep UV and for the first time in the EUV and soft x-ray wavelength regions. A peak responsivity was 200 mA/W at 270 nm wavelength and 60 mA/w at 13 nm in the EUV. Extended measurements at shorter wavelengths demonstrated a responsivity up to 80 mA/W for wavelengths as short as 1.5 nm. The responsivity was calculated by an optical model that accounted for the reflection and absorption of the incident electromagnetic wave, the pair creation energy in the 6H-SiC device, and the variation of the charge collection efficiency (CCE) with depth into the device. The calculated responsivity was in excellent agreement with the measured responsivity and with the structure of the p-n junction photodiode. The measured visible light sensitivity was a factor of 100 lower than that of a silicon photodiode. These new results open up several possible applications for SiC photodiodes, including the selective detection of EUV and soft x-ray radiation without contamination by visible and IR wavelengths. SiC photodiodes have also been proven to withstand prolonged UV exposure and extreme temperatures, thus making them nearly ideal detectors for fiiture solar and space missions where absolutely calibrated EUV and soft x-ray intensities must be accurately measured.
The determination of EUV optical constants in rare-earth metals is much hampered by the high reactivity and easy air contamination of these materials. The most difficult regions are a long wavelengths part of the EUV interval and the vicinity of absorption edges. In this study the optical constants of La and Tb are determined in a wide energy interval 14-400 eV. The study is performed by our recent method, which is suitable for reactive materials and for intervals around the absorption edges of elements. The samples are identically protected films with thickness ~ 10 nm or ~ 100 nm, which are deposited on silicon photodiodes. Mathematical treatment separates the contributions of a capping layer and a rare-earth metal and provides data which are free from the effects of air contamination. The precision and behavior of optical constants, as well as the parameters of the O2,3 and N4,5 edges in La and Tb are analyzed.
The Multi-order Solar EUV Spectrograph (MOSES) is a slitless spectrograph designed to study solar He II emission at 303.8 Å (1 Å = 0.1 nm), to be launched on a sounding rocket payload. One difference between MOSES and other slitless spectrographs is that the images are recorded simultaneously at three spectral orders, m = -1, 0, +1. Another is the addition of a narrow-band multilayer coating on both the grating and the fold flat, which will reject out-of-band lines that normally contaminate the image of a slitless instrument. The primary metrics for the coating were high peak reflectivity and suppression of Fe XV and XVI emission lines at 284 Å and 335 Å, respectively. We chose B4C/Mg2Si for our material combination since it provides excellent peak reflectivity and rejection of out-of-band wavelengths. Measurements of witness flats at NIST indicate the peak reflectivity at 303.8 is 39.0% for a 15 bilayer stack, while suppression ranges from 7.5x to 12.9x at 284 Å and from 3.4x to 15.1x at 335 Å for the individual reflections in the optical path. We present the results of coating the MOSES flight gratings and fold flat, including the spectral response of the fold flat and grating as measured at NIST's SURF III and Brookhaven's X24C beamline, respectively.
Efficiency measurements of a grazing-incidence diffraction grating, planned for the Constellation-X Reflection Grating Spectrometer (RGS), were performed using polarized synchrotron radiation at the NRL Brookhaven beamline X24C. The off-plane TM and TE efficiencies of the 5000 groove/mm MIT test grating, patterned on a silicon wafer, were measured and compared to the efficiencies calculated using the PCGRATE-SX code. The calculated and measured efficiencies are in agreement when using groove profiles derived from AFM measurements. The TM and TE efficiencies differ, offering the possibility of performing unique astrophysical science studies by exploiting the polarization sensitivity of the off-plane gratings. The grating calibrations demonstrate the importance of using polarized synchrotron radiation and code calculations for the understanding of the Constellation-X grating performance, in particular the effects of the groove profile and microroughness on the efficiency. The optimization of grazing incidence gratings, for both the off-plane and in-plane mounts, planned for the RGS and x-ray spectrometers on other missions will require detailed synchrotron measurements and code calculations.
The computational design of multilayer-coated diffraction gratings for the extreme ultraviolet (EUV) wavelength region and the experimental performance of the coated gratings depend on the optical constants of the layer materials. While accurate optical constants are available for many commonly used materials, the EUV optical constants can in practice differ significantly from the tabulated values. This is generally true near absorption edges, for reactive materials that may be subject to oxidation or contamination, and for the longer EUV wavelengths (>30 nm) where molecular effects can be important. Normal-incidence gratings with Mo/Si coatings operating in the 17-21 nm and 25-29 nm wavelength ranges were successfully designed and fabricated for the Extreme Ultraviolet Imaging Spectrometer (EIS) on the Solar-B mission, the first satellite instrument to carry a multilayer grating. Examples of multilayer gratings designed and fabricated for wavelengths <12 nm and >40 nm, using materials other than Mo/Si, will be given that have in many cases required the experimental determination of the optical constants owing to inaccuracies in the tabulated values.
We have produced and characterized Mo/Y multilayers designed as linear-polarizers for use near λ ~ 8 nm. By depositing these films directly onto silicon photodiodes, we are able to measure both reflectance and transmittance in the EUV using synchrotron radiation. These measurements have been used to access the accuracy of yttrium optical constants in this wavelength range. We describe our experimental results and discuss the prospects for the future development of efficient EUV polarization elements.
A solar ultraviolet detector prototype for the GOES spacecraft has been calibrated using the X24C beamline at the Brookhaven NSLS. Similar in design to the 3-channel SOHO CELIAS SEM, the GOES EUV uses a combination of transmission gratings and silicon photodiodes with thin-film metal overcoats to provide the required bandpasses. Four of the channels position the photodiodes at the first to fourth orders of 2500 and 5000 L/mm transmission gratings to provide spectral information over four wavelength bands from approximately 5-80 nm. The fifth channel positions the photodiode at first order of a 1667 L/mm transmission grating in combination with a bandpass filter centered at approximately 120 nm to provide coverage in the Lyman alpha region of teh solar spectrum. The GOES EUV will provid continuous monitoring of solar EUV in bandpasses that are known to have a large variability in the amount of energy deposition in the earth's ionosphere over a solar cycle. Prototype detector design and calibration procedure are discussed. Absolute responses of the design model and synchrotron beamline properties relevant to calibration are presented.
The design of Mo/Si and Mo/Y multilayers as EUV polarizers is presented. The polarization performance of these multilayers was calculated based on their optical properties at around Brewster angles. The polarization results of a silicon photodiode that was coated with an interface-engineered Mo/Si multilayer are described. The sensitivity of this specially-coated photodiode and its polarization responses were determined from both reflectance and transmittance of the multilayer coating, using synchrotron radiation. The multilayer reflected 69.8% of s-polarized light and only 2.4% of p-polarized light, therefore transmitted about 0.2% s-polarized light and 8.4% p-polarized light at 13.5 nm to the underlying photodiode substrate. A polarization ratio based on transmittance values, (Tp-Ts)/(Tp+Ts), of 95% was achieved with sufficiently high sensitivity. This result demonstrates the usefulness of Mo/Si multilayer-coated photodiodes as future EUV polarimeters.
We present an overview of currently available EUV multilayer coatings that can be used for the construction of solar physics instrumentation utilizing normal-incidence optics. We describe the performance of a variety of Si-based multilayers, including Si/B4C and new Si/SiC films that provide improved performance in the wavelength range from 25 n 35 nm, as well as traditional Si/Mo multilayers, including broad-band coatings recently developed for the Solar-B/EIS instrument. We also outline prospects for operation at both longer and shorter EUV wavelengths, and also the potential of ultra-short-period multilayers that work near normal incidence in the soft X-ray region.
The measured efficiencies of two flight gratings and the reflectances of two flight mirrors developed for the Extreme-Ultraviolet Imaging Spectrometer (EIS) for the Japanese Solar-B mission are presented. Each optic has two sectors with Mo/Si multilayers that refelct the 17 - 21 nm and 25 - 29 nm wavebands at normal incidence. The efficiencies that were measured using monochromatic synchrotron radiation are in good agreement with the calculated efficiencies.
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