Achromatic laboratory full-field transmission X-ray microscope

The implementation of full-field transmission X-ray microscopy (TXM) at X-ray tube sources suffers from image blurring due to the chromatic aberration of the lenses and from long exposure times due to the inherent low flux of laboratory sources. Here, we demonstrate the first laboratory full-field TXM system, which combines tailored monocapillary optics, an achromatic X-ray lens, and the MÖNCH hybrid silicon pixel detector to address these challenges. With current optics, this TXM system demonstrates a spatial resolution down to 480 nm using X-ray energies around 10 keV. Despite the large pixel pitch of the MÖNCH detector, high spatial resolution imaging can be achieved by using interpolation methods leveraging charge sharing. In addition, the energy resolving power of the MÖNCH detector allows for the acquisition of elemental information. Bridging the gap between structural and elemental characterizations using X-rays, the concept of this laboratory X-ray microscope provides new opportunities for research in the fields of material science, environmental science, and biology.