Daniel Hänschke

Efficient Volume Reconstruction for Parallel-Beam Computed Laminography by Filtered Backprojection on Multi-Core Clusters

Computed laminography (CL) was developed to use X-rays from synchrotron sources for high-resolution imaging of the internal structure of a flat specimen from a series of 2-D projection images. The projections are acquired by irradiation of the sample under different rotation angles where the object rotation axis is inclined with respect to the beam direction. This yields for laterally extended objects a more uniform average transmitted intensity during sample rotation compared with computed tomography (CT). The reconstruction problem of CL cannot be reduced to a data-efficient 2-D case (as for parallel-beam CT) since each single slice perpendicular to the rotation axis requires a 2-D region on the detector as input data for all projection directions. This paper describes a computationally efficient reconstruction procedure based on filtered backprojection (FBP) adapted to the CL acquisition geometry. From the Fourier slice theorem, we derive a framework for analytic image reconstruction and outline implementation details of the generic FBP algorithm. Different approaches reducing the reconstruction time by means of parallel and distributed computations are considered and evaluated.

Phase contrast laminography based on Talbot interferometry

Synchrotron laminography is combined with Talbot grating interferometry to address weakly absorbing specimens. Integrating both methods into one set-up provides a powerful x-ray diagnostical technique for multiple contrast screening of macroscopically large flat specimen and a subsequent non-destructive three-dimensional (3-D) inspection of regions of interest. The technique simultaneously yields the reconstruction of the 3-D absorption, phase, and the so-called dark-field contrast maps. We report on the theoretical and instrumental implementation of of this novel technique. Its broad application potential is exemplarily demonstrated for the field of cultural heritage, namely study of the historical Dead Sea parchment.

In-line Bragg magnifier based on V-shaped germanium crystals

In this work an X-ray imaging system based on a recently developed in-line two-dimensional Bragg magnifier composed of two monolithic V-shaped crystals made of dislocation-free germanium is presented. The channel-cut crystals were used in one-dimensional and in two-dimensional (crossed) configurations in imaging applications and allowed measurement of phase-contrast radiograms both in the edge-enhanced and in the holographic regimes. The measurement of the phase gradient in two orthogonal directions is demonstrated. The effective pixel size attained was 0.17 µm in the one-dimensional configuration and 0.5 µm in the two-dimensional setting, offering a twofold improvement in spatial resolution over devices based on silicon. These results show the potential for applying Bragg magnifiers to imaging soft matter at high resolution with reduced dose owing to the higher efficiency of Ge compared with Si.

Three-dimensional imaging of dislocations by X-ray diffraction laminography

Synchrotron radiation laminography with X-ray diffraction contrast enables three-dimensional imaging of dislocations in monocrystalline wafers. We outline the principle of the technique, the required experimental conditions, and the reconstruction procedure. The feasibility and the potential of the method are demonstrated by three-dimensional imaging of dislocation loops in an indent-damaged and annealed silicon wafer.

Correlated Three-Dimensional Imaging of Dislocations: Insights into the Onset of Thermal Slip in Semiconductor Wafers

Correlated x-ray diffraction imaging and light microscopy provide a conclusive picture of three-dimensional dislocation arrangements on the micrometer scale. The characterization includes bulk crystallographic properties like Burgers vectors and determines links to structural features at the surface. Based on this approach, we study here the thermally induced slip-band formation at prior mechanical damage in Si wafers. Mobilization and multiplication of preexisting dislocations are identified as dominating mechanisms, and undisturbed long-range emission from regenerative sources is discovered.

Gauging low-dose X-ray phase-contrast imaging at a single and large propagationdistance

The interactions of a beam of hard and spatio-temporally coherent X-rays with a soft-matter sample primarily induce a transverse distribution of exit phase variations δϕ (retardations or advancements in pieces of the wave front exiting the object compared to the incoming wave front) whose free-space propagation over a distance z gives rise to intensity contrast gz. For single-distance image detection and |δϕ| ≪ 1 all-order-in-z phase-intensity contrast transfer is linear in δϕ. Here we show that ideal coherence implies a decay of the (shot-)noise-to-signal ratio in gz and of the associated phase noise as z(-1/2) and z(-1), respectively. Limits on X-ray dose thus favor large values of z. We discuss how a phase-scaling symmetry, exact in the limit δϕ → 0 and dynamically unbroken up to |δϕ| ∼ 1, suggests a filtering of gz in Fourier space, preserving non-iterative quasi-linear phase retrieval for phase variations up to order unity if induced by multi-scale objects inducing phase variations δϕ of a broad spatial frequency spectrum. Such an approach continues to be applicable under an assumed phase-attenuation duality. Using synchrotron radiation, ex and in vivo microtomography on frog embryos exemplifies improved resolution compared to a conventional single-distance phase-retrieval algorithm.

High-resolution X-ray phase-contrast tomography from single-distance radiographs applied to developmental stages of Xenopus laevis

Considering a pure and not necessarily weak phase object, we review a noniterative and nonlinear single-distance phase-retrieval algorithm. The latter exploits the fact that a well-known linear contrast-transfer function, which incorporates all orders in object-detector distance, can be modified to yield a quasiparticle dispersion. Accepting a small loss of information, this algorithm also retrieves the high-frequency parts of the phase in an artefact free way. We point out an extension of this highly resolving quasiparticle approach for mixed objects by assuming a global attenuation-phase duality. Tomographically reconstructing two developmental stages in Xenopus laevis, we compare our approach with a linear algorithm, based on the transport-of-intensity equation, which suppresses high-frequency information.

Applications of Medipix2 single photon detectors at the ANKA synchrotron facility

Medipix2 single photon-counting pixel detectors are nowadays confirmed as a valuable concept in different X-ray analysis and imaging techniques using either X-ray tubes or synchrotron sources. Recently, the detector pool of the ANKA synchrotron source was equipped with a set of these detectors. In this work we describe the main results obtained by applying Medipix2 single photon counting detectors to synchrotron radiation methods. The results were obtained at the TopoTomo beamline whose X-ray tuneability in energy and flux allows a detailed characterization of different sensor materials, the energy calibration of detector arrays and the application of different imaging methods.

syris: a flexible and efficient framework for X-ray imaging experiments simulation

An open-source framework for conducting a broad range of virtual X-ray imaging experiments, syris, is presented. The simulated wavefield created by a source propagates through an arbitrary number of objects until it reaches a detector. The objects in the light path and the source are time-dependent, which enables simulations of dynamic experiments, e.g. four-dimensional time-resolved tomography and laminography. The high-level interface of syris is written in Python and its modularity makes the framework very flexible. The computationally demanding parts behind this interface are implemented in OpenCL, which enables fast calculations on modern graphics processing units. The combination of flexibility and speed opens new possibilities for studying novel imaging methods and systematic search of optimal combinations of measurement conditions and data processing parameters. This can help to increase the success rates and efficiency of valuable synchrotron beam time. To demonstrate the capabilities of the framework, various experiments have been simulated and compared with real data. To show the use case of measurement and data processing parameter optimization based on simulation, a virtual counterpart of a high-speed radiography experiment was created and the simulated data were used to select a suitable motion estimation algorithm; one of its parameters was optimized in order to achieve the best motion estimation accuracy when applied on the real data. syris was also used to simulate tomographic data sets under various imaging conditions which impact the tomographic reconstruction accuracy, and it is shown how the accuracy may guide the selection of imaging conditions for particular use cases.

Nonlinear, noniterative, single-distance phase retrieval and developmental biology

For coherent X-ray imaging, based on phase contrast through free-space Fresnel propagation, we discuss two noniterative, nonlinear approaches to the phase-retrieval problem from a single-distance intensity map of a pure-phase object. On one hand, a perturbative set-up is proposed where nonlinear corrections to the linearized transport-of-intensity situation are expanded in powers of the object-detector distance z and are evaluated in terms of the linear estimate. On the other hand, a nonperturbative projection algorithm, which is based on the (linear and local) contrast-transfer function (CTF), works with an effective phase in Fourier space. This effective phase obeys a modified CTF relation between intensity contrast at z > 0 and phase contrast at z = 0: Unphysical singularities of the local CTF model are cut off to yield ‘quasiparticles’ in analogy to the theory of the Fermi liquid. By identifying the positions of the zeros of the Fourier transformed intensity contrast as order parameters for the dynamical breaking of scaling symmetry we investigate the phase structure of the forward-propagation problem when interpreted as a statistical system. Results justify the quasiparticle approach for a wide range of intermediary phase variations. The latter algorithm is applied to data from biological samples recorded at the beamlines TopoTomo and ID19 at ANKA and ESRF, respectively.For coherent X-ray imaging, based on phase contrast through free-space Fresnel propagation, we discuss two noniterative, nonlinear approaches to the phase-retrieval problem from a single-distance intensity map of a pure-phase object. On one hand, a perturbative set-up is proposed where nonlinear corrections to the linearized transport-of-intensity situation are expanded in powers of the object-detector distance z and are evaluated in terms of the linear estimate. On the other hand, a nonperturbative projection algorithm, which is based on the (linear and local) contrast-transfer function (CTF), works with an effective phase in Fourier space. This effective phase obeys a modified CTF relation between intensity contrast at z > 0 and phase contrast at z = 0: Unphysical singularities of the local CTF model are cut off to yield ‘quasiparticles’ in analogy to the theory of the Fermi liquid. By identifying the positions of the zeros of the Fourier transformed intensity contrast as order parameters for the dynami...