X-ray Bragg diffraction on periodic surface gratings

We report on the X-ray Bragg diffraction analysis of periodic surface gratings on (100) GaAs crystals. We show that the X-ray Bragg diffraction is a very powerful method to investigate ultrafine surface gratings and allow us to determine not only the grating period but, in particular, the width of the grooves and to characterize the quality of the sidewalls, which is not easily possible with optical methods. The X-ray diffraction on surface crystal gratings is analogue to the Fraunhofer diffraction of multiple slits or reflection gratings.