Full-field hard x-ray microscopy with interdigitated silicon lenses

Full-field x-ray microscopy using x-ray objectives has become a mainstay of the biological and materials sciences. However, the inefficiency of existing objectives at x-ray energies above 15 keV has limited the technique to weakly absorbing or two-dimensional (2D) samples. Here, we show that significant gains in numerical aperture and spatial resolution may be possible at hard x-ray energies by using silicon-based optics comprising ‘interdigitated’ refractive silicon lenslets that alternate their focus between the horizontal and vertical directions.

By capitalizing on the nano-manufacturing processes available to silicon, we show that it is possible to overcome the inherent inefficiencies of silicon-based optics and interdigitated geometries. As a proof-of-concept of Si-based interdigitated objectives, we demonstrate a prototype interdigitated lens with a resolution of ≈255 nm at 17 keV.