Quantitative X-Ray Phase-Contrast Microtomography from a Compact Laser Driven Betatron Source

X-ray phase-contrast imaging has recently led to a revolution in resolving power and tissue contrast in biomedical imaging, microscopy and materials science. The necessary high spatial coherence is currently provided by either large-scale synchrotron facilities with limited beamtime access or by mic...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:arXiv.org 2014-12
Main Authors: Wenz, J, Schleede, S, Khrennikov, K, Bech, M, Thibault, P, Heigoldt, M, Pfeiffer, F, Karsch, S
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Biomedical materials
Coherence
Collimation
Electron density
Emission
High power lasers
Laser applications
Lasers
Materials science
Medical imaging
Microtomography
Plasma waves
Resolution
X ray imagery
X ray tubes
X-rays
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:X-ray phase-contrast imaging has recently led to a revolution in resolving power and tissue contrast in biomedical imaging, microscopy and materials science. The necessary high spatial coherence is currently provided by either large-scale synchrotron facilities with limited beamtime access or by microfocus X-ray tubes with rather limited flux. X-rays radiated by relativistic electrons driven by well-controlled high-power lasers offer a promising route to a proliferation of this powerful imaging technology. A laser-driven plasma wave accelerates and wiggles electrons, giving rise to brilliant keV X-ray emission. This so-called Betatron radiation is emitted in a collimated beam with excellent spatial coherence and remarkable spectral stability. Here we present the first phase-contrast micro-tomogram revealing quantitative electron density values of a biological sample using betatron X-rays, and a comprehensive source characterization. Our results suggest that laser-based X-ray technology offers the potential for filling the large performance gap between synchrotron- and current X-ray tube-based sources.
ISSN:2331-8422
DOI:10.48550/arxiv.1412.6355