Real Time Tomography at the Swiss Light Source

Abstract

The penetrating power of X-rays coupled with the high flux of 3rd generation synchrotron sources makes X-ray tomography to excel among fast imaging methods . To exploit this asset of synchrotron sources is the motivation for setting up an ultra-fast tomography endstation at the TOMCAT beamline. The state of the art instruments at synchrotron sources offer routinely a temporal resolution of tens of seconds in tomography. For a number of applications, for example biomedical studies, the relevant time scales (breathing, heartbeat) are rather in the range of 0.5-2 seconds. To overcome motion artifacts when imaging such systems a new ultra-fast tomographic data acquisition scheme is being developed at the TOMCAT beamline. We can acquire a full set of projections at sub-second timescale in monochromatic or white-beam configuration. We present a feasibility study with the ultimate aim to achieve sub-second temporal resolution in 3D without significant deterioration of the spatial resolution. Abstract. The penetrating power of X-rays coupled with the high flux of 3rd generation synchrotron sources makes Xray tomography to excel among fast imaging methods . To exploit this asset of synchrotron sources is the motivation for setting up an ultra-fast tomography endstation at the TOMCAT beamline. The state of the art instruments at synchrotron sources offer routinely a temporal resolution of tens of seconds in tomography. For a number of applications, for example biomedical studies, the relevant time scales (breathing, heartbeat) are rather in the range of 0.5-2 seconds. To overcome motion artifacts when imaging such systems a new ultra-fast tomographic data acquisition scheme is being developed at the TOMCAT beamline. We can acquire a full set of projections at sub-second timescale in monochromatic or whitebeam configuration. We present a feasibility study with the ultimate aim to achieve sub-second temporal resolution in 3D without significant deterioration of the spatial resolution. For the first time, the 3D dynamics of the very early stages of a quickly aging liquid foam can be visualised with high quality and sufficiently large field of view.

An introduction to the application of X-ray microtomography to the three-dimensional study of igneous rocks

“…The high photon flux available at synchrotron sources and the nearly parallel beam geometry allow fast data acquisition at very high spatial resolutions, resulting in precise mapping of the internal structures of the sample and allowing the interesting possibility of performing in situ and real time experiments (Babin et al, 2006;Fife et al, 2012;Mokso et al, 2010). Another important advantage of the beam geometry is the fact that the spatial resolution of the source-detector system can be preserved even at relatively large sample-to-detector distances, allowing the mounting of apparatus around the samples (cryostats, furnaces, mechanical devices, magnetic fields, etc.…”

Quantitative 3D Characterization of Solidification Structure and Defect Evolution in Al Alloys

“…[15,16]). Since then, advances have been very rapid using both laboratory sources, and especially with the development of third-generation synchrotron X-ray sources, which allow the capture of 3D images with both high spatial (<1µm) [17] and temporal (<1s) resolution [18]. Equally importantly has been the development of the algorithms and computational resources for performing the 3D image analysis of the results.…”

A four-dimensional X-ray tomographic microscopy study of bubble growth in basaltic foam

“…X-ray tomographic microscopy was performed at the TOMCAT beamline of the Swiss Light Source at the Paul Scherrer Institute (Villigen, Switzerland) using a laser-based heating system 10 and an ultrafast endstation 30 . Two class-four diode lasers (980 nm) were placed 180° apart and ~40 mm from the sample.…”