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Alvarez varifocal X-ray lens

Research output: Contribution to Journal/MagazineJournal articlepeer-review

Published
  • Vishal Dhamgaye
  • David Laundy
  • Hossein Khosroabadi
  • Thomas Moxham
  • Sara Baldock
  • Oliver Fox
  • Kawal Sawhney
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Article number4582
<mark>Journal publication date</mark>31/07/2023
<mark>Journal</mark>Nature Communications
Issue number1
Volume14
Publication StatusPublished
<mark>Original language</mark>English

Abstract

Visible light optical elements such as lenses and mirrors have counterparts for X-rays. In the visible regime, a variable focusing power can be achieved by an Alvarez lens which consists of a pair of inline planar refractors with a cubic thickness profile. When the two refractors are laterally displaced in opposite directions, the parabolic component of the wavefront is changed resulting in a longitudinal displacement of the focus. This paper reports an implementation of this concept for X-rays using two planar microfabricated refractive elements. The Alvarez X-ray lens can vary the focal distance of an elliptical X-ray mirror or a planar compound X-ray lens over several millimetres. The study presents the first demonstration of an Alvarez X-ray lens which adaptively corrects defocus and astigmatism aberrations of X-ray optics. In addition, the Alvarez X-ray lens eliminates coma aberration in an elliptical mirror, to the lowest order, when combining the lens with an adjustment of the pitch angle of the mirror.