J. Synchrotron Rad. 9 (2002) 254-257 [ DOI 10.1107/S0909049502005502 ]

A new bend-magnet beamline for scanning transmission X-ray microscopy at the Advanced Light Source

T. Warwick(a), H. Ade(b), D. Kilcoyne(b), M. Kritscher(a), T. Tylisczcak(c), S. Fakra(a), A. Hitchcock(c), P. Hitchcock(c) and H. Padmore(a)
(a) Advanced Light Source, Berkeley Lab, Berkeley, CA USA 94720
(b) North Carolina State University, Raleigh, North Carolina 27695, USA
(c) BIMR, McMaster University, Hamilton, ON, Canada L8S 4M1

(Received 28 Jan 2002; accepted 25 March 2002)

Synopsis: The design and performance of a bend-magnet beamline, for scanning transmission X-ray microscopy at the Advanced Light Source, is described.

Abstract: The high brightness of the bend magnets at the Advanced Light Source has been exploited to illuminate a scanning transmission X-ray microscope (STXM). This is the ®rst diffraction-limited scanning X-ray microscope to operate with a useful count rate on a synchrotron bend-magnet source. A simple dedicated beamline has been built covering the range of photon energy from 250 eV to 600 eV. The beamline is always available and needs little adjustment. Use of this facility is much easier than that of installations that share undulator beams. This facility provides radiation for C 1s, N 1s and O 1s near-edge X-ray absorption spectromicroscopy with STXM count rates in excess of 1 MHz and with spectral resolution typically 1:2000, limited to about 1:5000.

Keywords: bend magnets; diffraction limit; zone plates; scanning microscopy; NEXAFS.

@2002 International Union of Crystallography