Synchrotron radiation stability with meV-level energy resolution: in situ characterization.

One of the most critical parameters in synchrotron radiation (SR) experiments is the stability of the photon energy, which is primarily affected by the stability of the light source and the optical elements in the beamline. Due to the characteristics of SR and the use of dispersive elements such as monochromators in the beamline, the change of the beam position is usually accompanied by the change of energy and flux, while most traditional beam monitoring methods are based on the direct or indirect measurement of total flux, and are therefore sensitive to the beam position only, having no energy resolution. In this paper, an in situ monitoring system has been designed to measure the short-term (jitter) and long-term (drift) characteristics of the energy variation in the SR beamline. The system consists of a double-crystal monochromator, an orthogonal analysis crystal, and an X-ray imaging detector, which could decouple the angle and energy spread of the photon beam based on the dispersion effect in Bragg diffraction. The time response and the energy resolution of the system could reach millisecond and millielectron volt level, respectively.

Mixed stitching interferometry with correction from one-dimensional profile measurements for high-precision X-ray mirrors.

This work presents a mixed stitching interferometry method with correction from one-dimensional profile measurements. This method can correct the error of stitching angles among different subapertures using the relatively accurate one-dimensional profiles of the mirror, e.g., provided by the contact profilometer. The measurement accuracy is simulated and analyzed. The repeatability error is decreased by averaging multiple measurements of the one-dimensional profile and using multiple profiles at different measurement positions. Finally, the measurement result of an elliptical mirror is presented and compared with the global algorithm-based stitching, and the error of the original profiles is reduced to one-third. This result shows that this method can effectively suppress the accumulation of stitching angle errors in classic global algorithm-based stitching. The accuracy of this method can be further improved by using high-precision one-dimensional profile measurements such as the nanometer optical component measuring machine (NOM).

Characterization of the error of the speckle-based wavefront metrology device at Shanghai Synchrotron Radiation Facility.

A metrology device based on the near-field speckle technique was developed in the x-ray test beamline at the Shanghai Synchrotron Radiation Facility to meet the at-wavelength detection requirements of ultra-high-precision optical elements. Different sources of error that limit the uncertainty of the instrument were characterized. Two main factors that contribute to the uncertainty of the measurements were investigated: (1) noise errors introduced by the electronics and the errors introduced by the algorithm and (2) stability errors owing to environmental conditions. The results show that the high measurement stability of the device is realized because it is insensitive to the effect of the external environment. The repetition accuracy of the device achieved 9 nrad (rms) when measuring the planar mirror that produces weak phase curvature.

Novel Environmentally Friendly Waterborne Epoxy Coating with Long-Term Antiscaling and Anticorrosion Properties.

Metal pipes in industrial production are exposed to various corrosive ions. The combined action of these ions with oxygen in water causes corrosion and contamination of the metal pipes and equipment. In addition, metallic ions in water react with anions to form scale on the surface of the metal, which significantly reduces the service life of the metal and equipment, resulting in safety hazards. Waterborne coatings have attracted tremendous attention due to the less negative impact on the environment, but their practical applications are severely restricted by poor barrier properties and poor mechanical durability. Herein, the barrier properties of water-based coatings are successfully improved by adding functional slow-release nanofillers, and the fillers also endow the coating with excellent antiscaling properties. A functional slow-release nanofiller (lecithin/SiO2/HEDP) was prepared using HEDP (etidronic acid) as the scale inhibitor active material and SiO2 as the carrier, combined with a phospholipid membrane with slow-release permeability. With the addition of slow-release fillers, compared with the EP coating, the impedance modulus of composite coatings increases about 1 order of magnitude, the scale inhibition rate is as high as 80.7%, and the antiscaling life is double that of the coating without the phospholipid-coated filler. Thus, this study is expected to provide a new perspective for the preparation of new slow-release fillers and high-efficiency scale inhibitor coatings.

Quantitative X-ray Channel-Cut Crystal Diffraction Wavefront Metrology Using the Speckle Scanning Technique.

A speckle-based method for the X-ray crystal diffraction wavefront measurement is implemented, and the slope errors of channel-cut crystals with different surface characteristics are measured. The method uses a speckle scanning technique generated by a scattering membrane translated using a piezo motor to infer the deflection of X-rays from the crystals. The method provides a high angular sensitivity of the channel-cut crystal slopes in both the tangential and sagittal directions. The experimental results show that the slope error of different cutting and etching processes ranges from 0.25 to 2.98 µrad. Furthermore, the results of wavefront deformation are brought into the beamline for simulation. This method opens up possibilities for new high-resolution applications for X-ray crystal diffraction wavefront measurement and provides feedback to crystal manufacturers to improve channel-cut fabrication.

Absolute metrology method of the x-ray mirror with speckle scanning technique.

As an important characterization method for beamline optics, at-wavelength metrology technology based on wavefront measurements has been developed for many years. However, the previous studies on at-wavelength metrology of reflective mirrors is limited to the indirect method. So, the accurate surface information of the mirror under test would normally be inaccessible because of lack of experimental deconvolution between the mirror and any backgrounds from upstream optics. In this study, an absolute metrology method is developed based on the speckle scanning technique. Using this method, the surface profile of the mirror can be extracted exactly from the mixed information of the entire upstream beamline. At the same time, data acquisition time can also be significantly reduced by the processing algorithm introduced in this study without sacrificing the angular sensitivity.

High-efficiency fast X-ray imaging detector development at SSRF.

Indirect X-ray imaging detectors consisting of scintillator screens, long-working-distance microscope lenses and scientific high-speed complementary metal-oxide semiconductor (CMOS) cameras are usually used to realize fast X-ray imaging with white-beam synchrotron radiation. However, the detector efficiency is limited by the coupling efficiency of the long-working-distance microscope lenses, which is only about 5%. A long-working-distance microscope lenses system with a large numerical aperture (NA) is designed to increase the coupling efficiency. It offers an NA of 0.5 at 8× magnification. The Mitutoyo long-working-distance microscope lenses system offers an NA of 0.21 at 7.5× magnification. Compared with the Mitutoyo system, the developed long-working-distance microscope lenses system offers about twice the NA and four times the coupling efficiency. In the indirect X-ray imaging detector, a 50 µm-thick LuAG:Ce scintillator matching with the NA, and a high-speed visible-light CMOS FastCAM SAZ Photron camera are used. Test results show that the detector realized fast X-ray imaging with a frame rate of 100000 frames s-1 and fast X-ray microtomography with a temporal sampling rate up to 25 Hz (25 tomograms s-1).

Absolute surface metrology by rotational averaging in oblique incidence interferometry.

A modified method for measuring the absolute figure of a large optical flat surface in synchrotron radiation by a small aperture interferometer is presented. The method consists of two procedures: the first step is oblique incidence measurement; the second is multiple rotating measurements. This simple method is described in terms of functions that are symmetric or antisymmetric with respect to reflections at the vertical axis. Absolute deviations of a large flat surface could be obtained when mirror antisymmetric errors are removed by N-position rotational averaging. Formulas are derived for measuring the absolute surface errors of a rectangle flat, and experiments on high-accuracy rectangle flats are performed to verify the method. Finally, uncertainty analysis is carried out in detail.

Highly sensitive wave-front sensor with a non-zero-order phase plate.

We propose a novel highly sensitive wave front detection method for a quick check of a flat wave front by taking advantage of a non-zero-order pi phase plate that yields a non-zero-order diffraction pattern. When a light beam with a flat wave front illuminates a phase plate, the zero-order intensity is zero. When there is a slight distortion of the wave front, the zero-order intensity increases. The ratio of first-order intensity to that of zero-order intensity is used as the criterion with which to judge whether the wave front under test is flat, eliminating the influence of background light. Experimental results demonstrate that this method is efficient, robust, and cost-effective and should be highly interesting for a quick check of a flat wave front of a large-aperture laser beam and adaptive optical systems.

Talbot effect of a grating with different kinds of flaws.

The Talbot effect of a grating with different kinds of flaws is analyzed with the finite-difference time-domain (FDTD) method. The FDTD method can show the exact near-field distribution of different flaws in a high-density grating, which is impossible to obtain with the conventional Fourier transform method. The numerical results indicate that if a grating is perfect, its Talbot imaging should also be perfect; if the grating is distorted, its Talbot imaging will also be distorted. Furthermore, we evaluate high-density gratings by detecting the near-field distribution with the scanning near-field optical microscopy technique. Experimental results are also given.

Comparison of superresolution effects with annular phase and amplitude filters.

The characteristics of annular amplitude and phase filters are compared. The behavior of two-zone phase and amplitude filters as the inner zone is increased is studied in detail. Numerical simulations show that a phase filter can achieve a superresolution effect, a circular Dammann effect, and flat-topped intensity for different applications, whereas a two-zone amplitude filter can generate only a superresolution effect. The experimental results show that both amplitude and phase filters can achieve superresolution. Generally, a phase superresolution filter is recommended for its higher efficiency and its special diffraction patterns that are impossible to achieve with an amplitude filter.