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

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-12429436-B2
Application number	US-202519011219-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jan 6, 2025
Priority date	Jan 8, 2024
Publication date	Sep 30, 2025
Grant date	Sep 30, 2025

Abstract

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.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. An apparatus comprising:
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 having a depth-of-focus and a focused x-ray spot at the sample; and
a microscope comprising an objective configured to receive and focus light from the portion of the sample, the objective having an object plane and a field-of-view, the object plane 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 within the field-of-view of the objective.

2. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein at least a portion of the x-ray optic system is located within the objective.

3. The apparatus of claim 1 , further comprising a light source configured to illuminate the portion of the sample with incident light, the objective configured to receive a reflected portion of the incident light from the portion of the sample.

4. The apparatus of claim 3 , wherein the light source comprises both brightfield and darkfield illumination.

5. The apparatus of claim 4 , wherein the darkfield illumination comprises a ring illuminator or a fiber optic illuminator.

6. The apparatus of claim 1 , further comprising the x-ray source, the x-ray source comprising:
an electron beam source configured to generate an electron beam; and
at least one target comprising at least one x-ray generating material, the at least one x-ray generating material configured to generate and emit x-rays in response to bombardment by at least a portion of the electron beam.

7. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the x-ray optic system comprises at least one capillary x-ray optic having an inner surface profile comprising at least one segment of a quadric shape.

8. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein an angle between the propagation direction of the focused x-ray beam and an optical axis of the objective is less than 30 degrees.

9. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the microscope further comprises a mirror configured to receive and reflect the light from the portion of the sample propagating substantially collinearly with an x-ray propagation axis and to deflect at least some of the light away from the x-ray propagation axis.

10. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the apparatus comprises a multi-modal illumination apparatus.

11. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the microscope is a visible light microscope, an infrared light microscope, and/or a near-infrared light microscope.

12. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the microscope is configured to be operated in a brightfield illumination mode and/or a darkfield illumination mode.

13. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the objective comprises a reflective microscope objective.

14. The apparatus of claim 13 , wherein the reflective microscope objective comprises a first aspherical mirror and a second aspherical mirror.

15. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the objective comprises a refractive microscope objective.

16. The apparatus of claim 15 , wherein the refractive microscope objective comprises at least one lens.

17. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the objective comprises a hole, at least a portion of the x-ray optic system within the hole.

18. An apparatus comprising:
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 having a depth-of-focus and a focused x-ray spot at the sample; and
a microscope objective configured to receive and focus light from the portion of the sample, the objective having an optical axis and the x-ray optic system having an x-ray propagation axis tilted relative to the optical axis, the objective having an object plane and a field-of-view, the object plane 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 within the field-of-view of the objective.

19. The apparatus of claim 18 , wherein the x-ray optic system is located outside the objective.

20. The apparatus of claim 18 , wherein at least a portion of the x-ray optic system is located within the objective.

21. The apparatus of claim 18 , wherein the x-ray propagation axis and the optical axis have a non-zero angle therebetween.

22. The apparatus of claim 21 , wherein the non-zero angle in a range of 5 degrees to 30 degrees.

23. The apparatus of claim 21 , wherein the non-zero angle is in a range of less than 5 degrees.

24. An apparatus comprising:
at least one x-ray optic 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 having a depth-of-focus and a focused x-ray spot at the sample; and
an objective configured to receive and focus light from the portion of the sample, the objective having an optical axis and the at least one x-ray optic having an x-ray propagation axis substantially parallel to and displaced from the optical axis, the objective having an object plane and a field-of-view, the object plane 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 within the field-of-view of the objective.

25. The apparatus of claim 24 , wherein the at least one x-ray optic is displaced from a center axis of the objective.

Assignees

• Sigray Inc

Inventors

• Stripe Benjamin Donald
• Yun Wenbing
• Kirz Janos

Classifications

• G01N23/083 Primary

  the radiation being X-rays · CPC title

• G01N2223/204

  source created from radiated target · CPC title

• G01N23/04 Primary

  and forming images of the material · CPC title