A unique approach to accurately measure thickness in thick multilayers

X‐ray optics called multilayer Laue lenses (MLLs) provide a promising path to focusing hard X‐rays with high focusing efficiency at a resolution between 5 nm and 20 nm. MLLs consist of thousands of depth‐graded thin layers. The thickness of each layer obeys the linear zone plate law. X‐ray beamline tests have been performed on magnetron sputter‐deposited WSi₂/Si MLLs at the Advanced Photon Source/Center for Nanoscale Materials 26‐ID nanoprobe beamline. However, it is still very challenging to accurately grow each layer at the designed thickness during deposition; errors introduced during thickness measurements of thousands of layers lead to inaccurate MLL structures. Here, a new metrology approach that can accurately measure thickness by introducing regular marks on the cross section of thousands of layers using a focused ion beam is reported. This new measurement method is compared with a previous method. More accurate results are obtained using the new measurement approach.     

Desolvation effects on the dissociation energy of diatomic molecules:Ab initio study of the dissociation of Li-F in polar media

Summary The potential curve of the ground state dissociation of Li-F in water has been studied by a combination of a standardab initio Hartree-Fock procedure and a perturbative reaction field approach. The electrostatic solute-solvent interaction is accounted for by the generalized Born formalism introduced through a perturbation approach. The calculations were carried out at a 6–311+G* basis set level. Diffuse functions ofs symmetry were included to model a desolvation potential. A double well potential curve was obtained for the dissociation of this molecule in the presence of a highly polarizable medium. The first minimum, corresponding to an ion pair, electrostatically bound, is found at aR(Li-F)<6.0 Å distance. As the two ions come together, a desolvation barrier of about 30 kcal/mol is to be overcome before the formation of the neutral Li-F at 1.56 Å. The barrier to ionization towards the ion pair is calculated to be about 14 kcal/mol. The dissociation of the ion pair towards the free ions is discussed in terms of the electrostatic solvation entropy changes.Contribution No 6 from Centro de Mecánica Cuantica Aplicada (CMCA)     

Mutual optical intensity propagation through non‐ideal mirrors

The mutual optical intensity (MOI) model is extended to include the propagation of partially coherent radiation through non‐ideal mirrors. The propagation of the MOI from the incident to the exit plane of the mirror is realised by local ray tracing. The effects of figure errors can be expressed as phase shifts obtained by either the phase projection approach or the direct path length method. Using the MOI model, the effects of figure errors are studied for diffraction‐limited cases using elliptical cylinder mirrors. Figure errors with low spatial frequencies can vary the intensity distribution, redistribute the local coherence function and distort the wavefront, but have no effect on the global degree of coherence. The MOI model is benchmarked against HYBRID and the multi‐electron Synchrotron Radiation Workshop (SRW) code. The results show that the MOI model gives accurate results under different coherence conditions of the beam. Other than intensity profiles, the MOI model can also provide the wavefront and the local coherence function at any location along the beamline. The capability of tuning the trade‐off between accuracy and efficiency makes the MOI model an ideal tool for beamline design and optimization.     

Physicochemical Properties and Functional Characteristics of Ecologically Extracted Shrimp Chitosans with Different Organic Acids during Demineralization Step

The current study aims to develop eco-friendly and economical chitosans with a wide range of applications using organic acids for shrimp shells demineralization. Chitosan samples were extracted from shrimp (Parapenaeus longirostris) shells and the demineralization step was performed with three organic acids (citric, acetic, and lactic) and two mineral acids (hydrochloric and sulfuric). The chitosans were characterized by Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction (XRD), and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The chitosans’ physicochemical properties were also determined. The characteristic bands and functional groups of the chitosans were identified by FTIR spectra. The chitosans’ crystallinity order was as follows: Ch_HCl > Ch_Citric > Ch_H2SO4 > Ch_Lactic > Ch_Acetic. The chitosans’ morphological characteristics revealed a smooth surface and fibrous structures with pores. Chitosans extracted by organic acids showed the highest extraction yields. Ch_HCl and Ch_Citric had higher degrees of deacetylation values; 83.67% and 81.47%, respectively. The solubility was proportional to the degree of deacetylation. Furthermore, Ch_H2SO4 and Ch_Citric had lower molecular weight values; 149 kDa and 183 kDa, respectively. Organic acids are as effective as mineral acids for shrimp shells demineralization. The developed process opens up possibilities to produce chitin and chitosan in a more eco-friendly way and at a lower cost in many industrial sectors.     

Kirkpatrick–Baez mirrors to focus hard X‐rays in two dimensions as fabricated,tested and installed at the Advanced Photon Source

The micro‐focusing performance for hard X‐rays of a fixed‐geometry elliptical Kirkpatrick–Baez (K–B) mirrors assembly fabricated, tested and finally implemented at the micro‐probe beamline 8‐BM of the Advanced Photon Source is reported. Testing of the K–B mirror system was performed at the optics and detector test beamline 1‐BM. K–B mirrors of length 80 mm and 60 mm were fabricated by profile coating with Pt metal to produce focal lengths of 250 mm and 155 mm for 3 mrad incident angle. For the critical angle of Pt, a broad bandwidth of energies up to 20 keV applies. The classical K–B sequential mirror geometry was used, and mirrors were mounted on micro‐translation stages. The beam intensity profiles were measured by differentiating the curves of intensity data measured using a wire‐scanning method. A beam size of 1.3 µm (V) and 1.2 µm (H) was measured with monochromatic X‐rays of 18 keV at 1‐BM. After installation at 8‐BM the measured focus met the design requirements. In this paper the fabrication and metrology of the K–B mirrors are reported, as well as the focusing performances of the full mirrors‐plus‐mount set‐up at both beamlines.     

Hard X-ray multilayer mirror round-robin on the wavefront preservation capabilities of W/B4C coatings

A round-robin between the multilayer deposition laboratories of the Advanced Photon Source, the European Synchrotron Radiation Facility and the National Synchrotron Light Source II has been initiated in order to study standard W/B₄C multilayer mirrors produced by the different facilities. The use of such multilayer mirrors for hard X-ray monochromatisation represents an important alternative to crystal-based devices when greater photon flux density is desirable for, e.g., X-ray imaging applications and other photon-intensive techniques. Currently, knowledge about the potential degradation of the wavefront in terms of beam profile distortion and coherence properties due to reflection on a multilayer mirror is limited. In order to address this issue, the beam profile and coherence properties of a monochromatic synchrotron beam reflected by the individual mirrors were studied at the Advanced Photon Source insertion device beamline 32-ID. The results indicate that by using the same coating material, commercially available high quality substrates and a similar coating technique, mirrors with comparable performance can be produced with quite different multilayer deposition facilities. Furthermore, no wave-optical formalism is available at this time which relates the influence of a multilayer reflection on the wavefront to the structural quality of the mirror. Hence, the experimental studies presented are highly targeted in order to identify parameters which have a potential influence on the wavefront preservation properties of a multilayer.     

Efficiency and coherence preservation studies of Be refractive lenses for XFELO application

Performance tests of parabolic beryllium refractive lenses, considered as X‐ray focusing elements in the future X‐ray free‐electron laser oscillator (XFELO), are reported. Single and double refractive lenses were subject to X‐ray tests, which included: surface profile, transmissivity measurements, imaging capabilities and wavefront distortion with grating interferometry. Optical metrology revealed that surface profiles were close to the design specification in terms of the figure and roughness. The transmissivity of the lenses is >94% at 8 keV and >98% at 14.4 and 18 keV. These values are close to the theoretical values of ideal lenses. Images of the bending‐magnet source obtained with the lenses were close to the expected ones and did not show any significant distortion. Grating interferometry revealed that the possible wavefront distortions produced by surface and bulk lens imperfections were on the level of ～λ/60 for 8 keV photons. Thus the Be lenses can be succesfully used as focusing and beam collimating elements in the XFELO.     

Biological Properties of Latex,Aqueous Extracts and Bee Products of Euphorbia officinarum L.: A Short Review

Euphorbia officinarum L. is a Moroccan endemic plant known as “Tikiout” and “Daghmus” that can also be found in Mauritania, Western Sahara, and Algeria. In the present review, “Euphorbia officinarum”, “metabolites” “hemisynthesis” were the keywords used for the research in the Web search engine Google Scholar and in the database Web of Science. Triterpenes, phytosterols and ingol diterpenes were isolated and identified in the latex of Moroccan E. officinarum. More than sixty triterpenes were obtained by hemisynthesis from natural triterpenes. Some of these derivatives had insecticidal and antimicrobial activity (phytopathogenic bacteria). The total phenol content and the antioxidant and anti-α-glucosidase activities were dependent on the time and temperature of extractions and also on the plant solvent ratio. The antioxidant activity of monofloral honey of E. officinarum origin was attributed to the phenol fraction (this fraction, previously isolated from honey samples, had better activity than the entire honey).