Development of a hard x-ray imaging microscope

A hard x-ray imaging microscope based on a phase zone plate has been developed and tested. The zone plate, with a 5 cm focal length and a 0.2 μm smallest linewidth, was used to image 8 keV x rays from the samples. The imaging microscope can be used to obtain nearly diffraction-limited resolution over the entire imaging field, and its resolution is almost independent of source size and source motions. We have tested such an imaging microscope, and a resolution of about 0.4 μm was obtained. The images were obtained with an exposure time of less than 1 min, for a magnification factor of 30 in the x rays. The x rays were then converted into visible light, and another 7 times magnification were obtained by using a lens system coupled to a charge coupled device camera. The results from the imaging microscope, and possible applications, will be discussed.