Dark-field X-ray microscopy, DFXM, is a new full-field imaging technique that non-destructively maps the structure and local strain inside deeply embedded crystalline elements in three dimensions. In DFXM an objective lens is placed along the diffracted beam to generate a magnified projection image of the local diffracted volume. In this work, a general formalism based on geometrical optics is provided for the diffraction imaging, valid for any crystallographic space group. This allows the simulation of DFXM images based on micro-mechanical models. Example simulations are presented with the formalism, demonstrating how this may be used to design new experiments or to interpret existing ones. In particular, it is shown how modifications to the experimental design may tailor the reciprocal-space resolution function to map specific components of the deformation-gradient tensor. The formalism supports multi-length-scale experiments, as it enables DFXM to be interfaced with 3D X-ray diffraction. To illustrate the use of the formalism, DFXM images are simulated from different contrast mechanisms on the basis of the strain field around a straight dislocation.
Dark-field X-ray microscopy (DFXM) is a nondestructive full-field imaging technique providing three-dimensional mapping of microstructure and local strain fields in deeply embedded crystalline elements. This is achieved by placing an objective lens in the diffracted beam, giving a magnified projection image. So far, the method has been applied with a time resolution of milliseconds to hours. In this work, the feasibility of DFXM at the picosecond time scale using an X-ray free-electron laser source and a pump–probe scheme is considered. Thermomechanical strain-wave simulations are combined with geometrical optics and wavefront propagation optics to simulate DFXM images of phonon dynamics in a diamond single crystal. Using the specifications of the XCS instrument at the Linac Coherent Light Source as an example results in simulated DFXM images clearly showing the propagation of a strain wave.
Dark-field x-ray microscopy (DFXM) is an x-ray imaging technique for mapping three-dimensional (3D) lattice strain and rotation in bulk crystalline materials. At present, these maps of local structural distortions are derived from the raw intensity images using an incoherent analysis framework. In this work, we describe a coherent, Fourier ptychographic approach that requires little change in terms of instrumentation and acquisition strategy, and may be implemented on existing DFXM instruments. We demonstrate the method experimentally and are able to achieve quantitative phase reconstructions of thin film samples and maps of the aberrations in the objective lens. The method holds particular promise for the characterization of crystalline materials containing weak structural contrast.
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