TY - JOUR A1 - Opolka, Alexander A1 - Müller, Dominik A1 - Fella, Christian A1 - Balles, Andreas A1 - Mohr, Jürgen A1 - Last, Arndt T1 - Multi-lens array full-field X-ray microscopy JF - Applied Sciences N2 - X-ray full-field microscopy at laboratory sources for photon energies above 10 keV suffers from either long exposure times or low resolution. The photon flux is mainly limited by the objectives used, having a limited numerical aperture NA. We show that this can be overcome by making use of the cone-beam illumination of laboratory sources by imaging the same field of view (FoV) several times under slightly different angles using an array of X-ray lenses. Using this technique, the exposure time can be reduced drastically without any loss in terms of resolution. A proof-of-principle is given using an existing laboratory metal-jet source at the 9.25 keV Ga K\(_α\)-line and compared to a ray-tracing simulation of the setup. KW - X-ray microscopy KW - full-field microscopy KW - compound refractive X-ray lenses KW - CRLs Y1 - 2021 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-244974 SN - 2076-3417 VL - 11 IS - 16 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Müller, Dominik A1 - Graetz, Jonas A1 - Balles, Andreas A1 - Stier, Simon A1 - Hanke, Randolf A1 - Fella, Christian T1 - Laboratory-Based Nano-Computed Tomography and Examples of Its Application in the Field of Materials Research JF - Crystals N2 - In a comprehensive study, we demonstrate the performance and typical application scenarios for laboratory-based nano-computed tomography in materials research on various samples. Specifically, we focus on a projection magnification system with a nano focus source. The imaging resolution is quantified with common 2D test structures and validated in 3D applications by means of the Fourier Shell Correlation. As representative application examples from nowadays material research, we show metallization processes in multilayer integrated circuits, aging in lithium battery electrodes, and volumetric of metallic sub-micrometer fillers of composites. Thus, the laboratory system provides the unique possibility to image non-destructively structures in the range of 170–190 nanometers, even for high-density materials. KW - nano CT KW - laboratory KW - X-ray KW - 3D reconstruction KW - instrumentation KW - integrated circuits KW - nondestructive testing KW - 3D X-ray microscopy Y1 - 2021 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-241048 SN - 2073-4352 VL - 11 IS - 6 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Dittmann, Jonas A1 - Balles, Andreas A1 - Zabler, Simon T1 - Optimization based evaluation of grating interferometric phase stepping series and analysis of mechanical setup instabilities JF - Journal of Imaging N2 - The diffraction contrast modalities accessible by X-ray grating interferometers are not imaged directly but have to be inferred from sine-like signal variations occurring in a series of images acquired at varying relative positions of the interferometer’s gratings. The absolute spatial translations involved in the acquisition of these phase stepping series usually lie in the range of only a few hundred nanometers, wherefore positioning errors as small as 10 nm will already translate into signal uncertainties of 1–10% in the final images if not accounted for. Classically, the relative grating positions in the phase stepping series are considered input parameters to the analysis and are, for the Fast Fourier Transform that is typically employed, required to be equidistantly distributed over multiples of the gratings’ period. In the following, a fast converging optimization scheme is presented simultaneously determining the phase stepping curves’ parameters as well as the actually performed motions of the stepped grating, including also erroneous rotational motions which are commonly neglected. While the correction of solely the translational errors along the stepping direction is found to be sufficient with regard to the reduction of image artifacts, the possibility to also detect minute rotations about all axes proves to be a valuable tool for system calibration and monitoring. The simplicity of the provided algorithm, in particular when only considering translational errors, makes it well suitable as a standard evaluation procedure also for large image series. KW - X-ray imaging KW - Talbot–Lau interferometer KW - grating interferometer KW - phase contrast imaging KW - darkfield imaging KW - phase stepping KW - optimization Y1 - 2018 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-197723 SN - 2313-433X VL - 4 IS - 6 ER - TY - THES A1 - Balles, Andreas T1 - In-line phase contrast and grating interferometry at a liquid-metal-jet source with micrometer resolution T1 - In-line Phasenkontrast und Gitterinterferometrie an einer Flüssigmetallanodenröhre mit Mikrometerauflösung N2 - As a non-destructive testing method, X-ray imaging has proved to be suitable for the examination of a variety of objects. The measurement principle is based on the attenuation of X-rays caused by these objects. This attenuation can be recorded as shades of intensity using X-ray detectors and thus contains information about the inner structure of the investigated object. Since X-rays are electromagnetic waves, they also experience a change of phase in addition to their attenuation while penetrating an object. In general, imaging methods based on this effect are referred to as phase contrast imaging techniques. In the laboratory, the two mainly used methods are the propagation based phase contrast or in-line phase contrast and the grating interferometry. While in-line phase contrast - under certain conditions - shows edge enhancement at interfaces due to interference, phase contrast in the grating interferometry is only indirectly measurable by the use of several gratings. In addition to phase contrast, grating interferometry provides access to the so-called dark-field imaging contrast, which measures the scattering of X-rays caused by an object. These two imaging techniques, together with a novel concept of laboratory X-ray sources, the liquid-metal-jet, form the main part of this work. Compared to conventional X-ray sources, the liquid-metal-jet source offers higher brightness. The term brightness is defined by the number of X-ray photons per second, emitting area (area of the X-ray spot) and solid angle at which they are emitted. On the basis of this source, a high resolution in-line phase contrast setup was partially developed in the scope of this work. Several computed tomographies show the feasibility of in-line phase contrast and the improvement of image quality by applying phase retrieval algorithms. Moreover, the determination of optimized sample positions for in-line phase contrast imaging is treated at which the edge enhancement is maximized. Based on primitive fiber objects, this optimization has proven to be a good approximation. With its high brightness in combination with a high spatial coherence, the liquid-metal-jet source is also interesting for grating interferometry. The development of such a setup is also part of this work. The overall concept and the characterization of the setup is presented as well as the applicability and its limits for the investigation of various objects. Due to the very unique concept of this grating interferometer it was possible to realize a modified interferometer system by using a single grating only. Its concept and results are also presented in this work. Furthermore, a grating interferometer based on a microfocus X-ray tube was tested regarding its performance. Thereby, parameters like the anode material, acquisition geometry and gratings were altered in order to find the advantages and disadvantages of each configuration. N2 - Als zerstörungsfreie Prüfmethode hat sich die Röntgenbildgebung zur Untersuchung unterschiedlichster Prüfobjekte bewährt. Das Messprinzip beruht dabei auf der durch das Prüfobjekt verursachten Schwächung der Röntgenstrahlung. Diese Schwächung kann als Helligkeitsschattierungen mittels eines Detektors aufgenommen werden und beinhaltet somit Informationen über das Innere des untersuchten Objekts. Da Röntgenstrahlen elektromagnetische Wellen sind, erfahren sie beim Durchdringen eines Objekts neben der Schwächung auch eine Veränderung ihrer Phase. Bildgebungsmethoden auf Grundlage dieses Effekts werden allgemein als Phasenkontrastbildgebungsverfahren zusammengefasst. Im Bereich von Laboraufbauten sind die zwei hauptsächlich genutzten Methoden der propagationsbasierte Phasenkontrast, auch In-line Phasenkontrast genannt, und die Gitterinterferometrie. Während sich beim In-line Phasenkontrast – unter gewissen Umständen – Kontrastüber-höhungen an Grenzflächen auf Grund von Interferenzen ausprägen, ist der Phasenkontrastbei der Gitterinterferometrie nur indirekt durch Verwendung mehrerer Gitter messbar. Neben dem Phasenkontrast ermöglicht die Gitterinterferometrie den Zugang zu einem weiteren Kontrastmodus, dem sogenannten Dunkelfeldkontrast, welcher ein Maß für die Streuung von Röntgenstrahlen an einer Probe darstellt. Diese beiden Bildgebungsmethoden im Zusammenhang mit einem neuartigen Konzept vonLaborröntgenquellen, der Flüssigmetallanodenröhre, bilden den Kern dieser Arbeit. Im Vergleich zu herkömmlichen Röntgenquellen bietet die Flüssigmetallanodenröhre eine höhere Brillanz. Der Begriff der Brillanz ist definiert durch die Anzahl von Röntgenphotonen pro Sekunde, emittierender Fläche (Fläche des Röntgenbrennflecks) und Raumwinkel, unter dem diese abgestrahlt werden. Auf Basis einer solchen Quelle wurde im Rahmen dieser Arbeit ein hochauflösender propagationsbasierter Phasenkontrastaufbau mitentwickelt. Ausgewählte Anwendungsbeispiele zeigen die Machbarkeit dieser Bildgebungsmethode und die Verbesserung der Bildqualität durch Anwendung von Phasenrückgewinnungsalgorithmen. Des Weiteren wird die Entwicklung einer Optimierung der Probenposition für den In-line Phasenkontrast behandelt, mit dem Ziel, die Kontrastüberhöhungen zu maximieren. Anhand experimenteller Überprüfung an Fasern erwies sich diese Optimierung als gute Näherung. Mit ihrer hohen Brillanz und räumlichen Kohärenz ist die Flüssigmetallanodenröhre eine vielversprechende Röntgenquelle für den Einsatz an einem Gitterinterferometer, weshalb auch die Entwicklung eines solchen Aufbaus im Fokus der Arbeit stand. Neben der Präsentation des Gesamtkonzepts und der Charakterisierung des Systems konnten die Anwendbarkeit aber auch die Grenzen dieses Aufbaus zur Untersuchung verschiedenster Materialiengezeigt werden. Auf Grund des sehr speziellen Gesamtkonzepts des Gitterinterferometers gelang es, ein abgewandeltes Interferometersystem mit nur einem Gitter zu realisieren. Dessen Konzeption und Ergebnisse werden im Rahmen dieser Arbeit ebenfalls dargestellt. Des Weiteren wurde ein Gitterinterferometer unter Verwendung einer Mikrofokusröntgenquelle hinsichtlich seiner Eigenschaften erprobt. Dabei wurden Systemparameter wie Anodenmaterial, Aufnahmegeometrie und Gitter variiert, um sowohl Vor- als auch Nachteile einer jeden Konfiguration zu finden. KW - Phasenkontrastverfahren KW - Röntgenmikroskopie KW - coherent imaging KW - grating interferometry KW - liquid-metal-jet KW - in-line phase contrast Y1 - 2021 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-235917 ER -