Quantitative phase nano-imaging with a laboratory source

Abstract

Investigating the structure of matter at the nanoscale non destructively is a key capability enabled by X-ray imaging. One of the most powerful nano-imaging methods is X-ray ptychography, a coherent diffraction imaging technique that has become the go-to method at synchrotron facilities for applications ranging from brain imaging to battery materials. However, the requirements in terms of X-ray beam quality have limited its use to large synchrotron facilities and, to date, only one attempt has been made to translate the technique to a small-scale laboratory. To unleash the power of this technique to the broad user community of laboratory X-ray sources, there are outstanding questions to answer including whether the quantitativeness of the information is preserved in a laboratory despite the drastic decrease in X-ray flux of several orders of magnitude, with respect to synchrotron instruments. In this study not only we demonstrate that the quantitativeness of X-ray ptychography is preserved in a laboratory setting, but we also apply the method to the imaging of a brain tissue phantom. Finally, we describe the current challenges and limitations, and we set the basis for further development and future directions of quantitative nano-imaging with laboratory X-ray sources.