Fast imaging of hard x rays with a laboratory microscope

An improved x-ray microscope with a fully electronic CCD detector system ha s been constructed that allows improved laboratory-based microstructural in vestigations of materials with hard x rays. It uses the Kirkpatrick-Baez mu ltilayer mirror design to form an image that has a demonstrated resolution of 4 mu m at 8 keV (Cu K-alpha radiation). This microscope performs well wi th standard sealed-tube laboratory x-ray sources, producing digital images with 20-s exposure times for a 5-mu m Au grid (a thickness of two absorptio n lengths). (C) 2000 Optical Society of America OCIS codes: 340.0340, 340.7 440, 340.7460.