Dose-efficient multimodal microscopy of human tissue at a hard X-ray nanoprobe beamline

Abstract

X-ray fluorescence microscopy performed at nanofocusing synchrotron beamlines produces quantitative elemental distribution maps at unprecedented resolution (down to a few tens of nanometres), at the expense of relatively long measuring times and high absorbed doses. In this work, a method was implemented in which fast low-dose in-line holography was used to produce quantitative electron density maps at the mesoscale prior to nanoscale X-ray fluorescence acquisition. These maps ensure more efficient fluorescence scans and the reduction of the total absorbed dose, often relevant for radiation-sensitive (e.g. biological) samples. This multimodal microscopy approach was demonstrated on human sural nerve tissue. The two imaging modes provide complementary information at a comparable resolution, ultimately limited by the focal spot size. The experimental setup presented allows the user to swap between them in a flexible and reproducible fashion, as well as to easily adapt the scanning parameters during an experiment to fine-tune resolution and field of view.

2023 atomic spectrometry update – a review of advances in X-ray fluorescence spectrometry and its special applications

“…A dose-efficient multimodal X-ray-microscopy approach for the analysis of human tissues was demonstrated by Sala et al 31 at the hard X-ray nanoprobe beamline NanoMAX at MAX IV (Lund, Sweden). Data from fast and low-dose in-line holography scans were combined to produce quantitative electron-density maps prior to nanoscale XRF-spectrometry-data acquisition.…”