Quantitative amplitude and phase contrast imaging in a scanning transmission X-ray microscope

Phase contrast in X-ray imaging provides lower radiation dose, and dramatically higher contrast at multi-keV photon energies when compared with absorption contrast. We describe here the use of a segmented detector in a scanning transmission X-ray microscope to collect partially coherent bright field images. We have adapted a Fourier filter reconstruction technique developed by McCallum, Landauer and Rodenburg to retrieve separate, quantitative maps of specimen phase shift and absorption. This is demonstrated in the imaging of a germanium test pattern using 525 eV soft X-rays. (C) 2007 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.