Sigray, Inc.

Xradia, Inc.

Carl Zeiss X-ray Microscopy, Inc.

University of California

Wenbing Yun

Janos Kirz

Sylvia Jia Yun Lewis

Yuxin Wang

Alan Francis Lyon

Srivatsan Seshadri

Benjamin Donald Stripe

Michael Feser

Frederick William Duewer

David Vine

David D Scott

Thomas Anthony Case

Sheraz Gul

David R Trapp

Kenneth W Nill

Andrei V Tkachuk

David Lewis Adler

Richard Ian Spink

William Henry Hansen

Ruimin Qiao

Ziyu Wu

Chris J Jacobsen

Peiping Zhu

David Charles Reynolds

Qingxi Yuan

Wanxia Huang

Sharon Chen

Mason L Freed

Hauyee Chang

Ying Xu

Malcolm R Howells

Howard A Padmore

Alastair A MacDowell

Chao-chih Hsu

Vikaram Singh

Frances Yenan Su

Thomas James Smart

Mark Antoine Cordier

Yan Feng

Benjamin Hornberger

John Spence

Alan Fancis Lyon

An x-ray imaging system includes at least one detector and an x-ray source including an x-ray transmissive vacuum window. The x-ray source is configured to produce diverging x-rays emerging from the vacuum window and propagating along an x-ray propagation axis extending through a region of interest of an object to the at least one detector. The diverging x-rays have propagation paths within an angular divergence angle greater than 1 degree centered on the x-ray propagation axis. The system further includes at least one first motion stage configured to rotate the object about a rotation axis. The system further includes at least one second motion stage configured to move the x-ray source and the at least one detector relative to the object to switch between a laminography configuration and a tomography configuration.

High throughput 3D x-ray imaging system using a transmission x-ray source

An apparatus includes at least one x-ray source configured to generate x-rays and at least one capillary x-ray focusing optic configured to receive and focus at least some of the generated x-rays into a focused x-ray beam. The apparatus further includes at least one x-ray optical component configured to receive the generated x-rays and/or the focused x-ray beam such that a focus size δof the focused x-ray beam is smaller than a focus size δof the focused x-ray beam without the at least one x-ray optical component.

System and method for generating a focused x-ray beam

An apparatus includes an x-ray source configured to generate x-rays, at least some of which impinge a sample and at least one diffractor configured to concurrently diffract at least some of the x-rays from the sample in a first direction and in a second direction substantially orthogonal to the first direction. The apparatus further includes at least one two-dimensional (2D) position-sensitive x-ray detector configured to receive at least some of the diffracted x-rays and to concurrently generate first spectral information of the x-rays diffracted in the first direction and second spectral information of the x-rays diffracted in the second direction. The apparatus further includes circuitry configured to receive the first and second spectral information and to generate a single x-ray absorption spectroscopy (XAS) spectrum using the first and second spectral information.

System and method for x-ray absorption spectroscopy using spectral information from two orthogonal planes

An apparatus includes an x-ray optic system configured to receive x-rays from an x-ray source, to focus at least some of the x-rays to form a focused x-ray beam, and to irradiate a portion of a sample with the focused x-ray beam. The focused x-ray beam has a depth-of-focus and a focused x-ray spot at the sample. The apparatus further includes a microscope having an objective configured to receive and focus light from the portion of the sample. The objective has an object plane and a field-of-view. The object plane is within a range centered on the depth-of-focus of the focused x-ray beam, the range having a width ten times the depth-of-focus, and the focused x-ray spot is within the field-of-view of the objective.

X-ray analysis system with focused x-ray beam and non-x-ray microscope

A system includes a stage for supporting a sample having at least first and second atomic elements. The first atomic element has a first characteristic x-ray line with a first energy and the second atomic element has a second characteristic x-ray line with a second energy, the first and second energies lower than 8 keV and separated from one another by less than 1 keV. The system further includes an x-ray source of x-rays having a third energy between the first and second energies and at least one x-ray optic configured to receive and focus at least some of the x-rays as an x-ray beam to illuminate the sample. The system further includes at least one x-ray detector configured to detect fluorescence x-rays produced by the sample in response to being irradiated by the x-ray beam.

X-ray fluorescence system and x-ray source with electrically insulative target material

An x-ray source includes an x-ray transmissive window having an x-ray transmittance greater than or equal to 20% for at least some x-rays having an x-ray energy less than 1 keV. The x-ray source further includes an electron source configured to generate at least one electron beam and an anode assembly configured to generate x-rays in response to electron bombardment by at least some of the electrons of the at least one electron beam from the electron source. The x-ray source further includes at least one x-ray optic is configured to receive at least some of the x-rays from the anode assembly and to direct at least some of the received x-rays to the window to form an x-ray beam.

Microfocus x-ray source for generating high flux low energy x-rays

An apparatus includes a plurality of stacked flat Bragg diffractors having at least a first flat Bragg diffractor and a second flat Bragg diffractor. The first and second flat Bragg diffractors are positioned sequentially along an x-ray propagation axis of an x-ray beam. The x-ray beam includes x-rays and has an angular beam divergence less than 30 mrad in at least one direction.

X-ray detector system with at least two stacked flat Bragg diffractors

An apparatus includes a transmission x-ray source having a window including a target layer of at least one x-ray generating material and an internal aperture configured to allow a first portion of an electron beam to bombard the target layer and to block a second portion of the electron beam from bombarding the target. The first portion of the electron beam has a full-width-at-half-maximum width at the target less than or equal to 1 micron. The window is spaced from the internal aperture by a first distance D. The apparatus further includes an x-ray detector system having a scintillator, an optical assembly, at least one image sensor configured to receive and respond to visible light by generating electrical signals, and a motorized stage configured to controllably adjust a position of the scintillator such that the scintillator is spaced from the window by a second distance D, wherein D/(D+D)is less than 0.2.

Secondary image removal using high resolution x-ray transmission sources

A three-dimensional x-ray imaging system includes at least one detector and an x-ray source including an x-ray transmissive vacuum window. The x-ray source is configured to produce diverging x-rays emerging from the vacuum window and propagating along an x-ray propagation axis extending through a region of interest of an object to the at least one detector. The diverging x-rays have propagation paths within an angular divergence angle greater than 1 degree centered on the x-ray propagation axis. The system further includes at least one sample motion stage configured to rotate the object about a rotation axis. The system further includes a sample mount configured to hold the object and comprises a first portion in the propagation paths of at least some of the diverging x-rays and having an x-ray transmission greater than 30% for x-rays having energies greater than 50% of a maximum x-ray energy of an x-ray spectrum of the diverging x-rays.

An x-ray computed laminography imaging system includes a transmission x-ray source configured to generate x-rays, at least some of the x-rays propagate along an x-ray propagation axis through a region of interest of an object. The system further includes a stage assembly configured to rotate the object about a rotation axis extending through the region of interest. The system further includes at least one x-ray detector configured to intercept at least some of the x-rays propagating along the x-ray propagation axis. The at least one x-ray detector includes a scintillator, at least one optical lens, and two-dimensional pixelated imaging circuitry. The scintillator has a thickness that is substantially parallel to the x-ray propagation axis and the at least one optical lens is configured to receive visible light from the scintillator and to focus the visible light into a two-dimensional image. The at least one optical lens has a depth of focus, and the thickness of the scintillator is in a range of 1 to 20 times the depth of focus.

System and method for compact laminography utilizing microfocus transmission x-ray source and variable magnification x-ray detector

An apparatus is configured to receive x-rays propagating from an x-ray source. The apparatus includes first and second x-ray diffractors, the second x-ray diffractor downstream from the first x-ray diffractor and first and second x-ray detectors. The first x-ray diffractor is configured to receive the x-rays, to diffract a first spectral band of the x-rays to the first x-ray detector, and to transmit at least 2% of the received x-rays to the second x-ray diffractor. The second x-ray diffractor is configured to receive the transmitted x-rays from the first x-ray diffractor and to diffract a second spectral band of the x-rays to the second x-ray detector. The first x-ray detector is configured to measure a first spectrum of the first spectral band of the x-rays and the second x-ray detector is configured to measure a second spectrum of the second spectral band of the x-rays.

X-ray sequential array wavelength dispersive spectrometer

A system and method for analyzing a three-dimensional structure of a sample includes generating a first x-ray beam having a first energy bandwidth less than 20 eV at full-width-at-half maximum and a first mean x-ray energy that is in a range of 1 eV to 1 keV higher than an absorption edge energy of a first atomic element of interest, and that is collimated to have a collimation angular range less than 7 mrad in at least one direction perpendicular to a propagation direction of the first x-ray beam; irradiating the sample with the first x-ray beam at a plurality of incidence angles relative to a substantially flat surface of the sample, the incidence angles of the plurality of incidence angles in a range of 3 mrad to 400 mrad; and simultaneously detecting a reflected portion of the first x-ray beam from the sample and detecting x-ray fluorescence x-rays and/or photoelectrons from the sample.

System and method using x-rays for depth-resolving metrology and analysis

A fluorescence mode x-ray absorption spectroscopy apparatus includes an electron bombardment source of x-rays, a crystal analyzer, the source and the crystal analyzer defining a Rowland circle having a Rowland circle radius (R), a detector, and at least one stage configured to position a sample such that at least a portion of the sample is between the crystal analyzer and the detector.

System and method for x-ray absorption spectroscopy using a crystal analyzer and a plurality of detector elements

An apparatus includes a crystal analyzer positioned relative to an x-ray source on a Rowland circle. The crystal analyzer includes crystal planes curved along at least one direction and configured to receive x-rays from the x-ray source and to disperse the received x-rays according to Bragg's law. The apparatus further includes a spatially resolving detector that includes a plurality of x-ray detection elements having a tunable first x-ray energy and/or a tunable second x-ray energy. The plurality of x-ray detection elements are configured to measure received dispersed x-rays having x-ray energies below the first x-ray energy while suppressing measurements above the first x-ray energy and/or to measure the received dispersed x-rays having x-ray energies above the second x-ray energy while suppressing measurements below the second x-ray energy.

Growing community of inventors

Walnut Creek, CA, United States of America

Wenbing Yun