X-Ray Microscopy by Holography at LURE

Abstract

Reporting the first x-ray holography experiment performed in Europe, we should acknowledge previous works in the field [1–4]: their results make it no longer necessary to demonstrate that x-ray holography can be achieved with available means. However, in our opinion, there is presently no evidence that this method can become a practical, routine technique of x-ray microscopy, i.e. a reliable technique, producing reconstructed images of realistic objects, with the expected resolution and a good signal-to-noise ratio. As a matter of fact, the strategy for obtaining this result is not well established, even regarding fundamental choices such as the holographic recording geometry, and the reconstruction method. Working toward that goal is certainly a long term project. Our experiment has been designed in this context for a limited goal: realization of the whole process, including optical reconstruction, to obtain images of realistic objects, with resolution in the range 0.5–1 µm. This implies a careful analysis of the whole process, taking into account the available means (x-ray source and optics, recording medium), which is presented hereafter. Sample holograms and a reconstruction are shown. To end, a short discussion of the future of x-ray holography is given.