Poly-capillary X-ray and neutron optics (Kumakhov optics)

Poly-capillary X-ray optics (Kumakhov optics) are based on multiple total external reflections of radiation in small-diameter hollow capillary tubes. Such tubes can be made to form different kinds of lens and make it possible to focus and control X-rays and neutrons over broad angular and energy ranges. Thus, as instances, X-rays can be focused for medical therapy and material sciences, and intense quasi-parallel X-ray and neutron beams can be produced from divergent sources for medical diagnosis and X-ray lithography. This new form of optical control offers improved efficiency and effectiveness in almost all uses of X-rays or slow neutrons, and makes possible many new applications.