The influence of working gas pressure on interlayer mixing in magnetron-deposited Mo/Si multilayers

Impact of Ar gas pressure (1−4 mTorr) on the growth of amorphous interlayers in Mo/Si multilayers deposited by magnetron sputtering was investigated by small-angle x-ray scattering (l=0.154 nm) and methods of cross-sectional transmission electron microscopy. Some reduction of thickness of the amorphous inter-layers with Ar pressure increase was found, while composition of the layers was enriched with molybdenum. The interface modification resulted in raise of EUV reflectance of the Mo/Si multilayer

Advances in full field microscopy with table-top soft x-ray lasers

We describe recent advances in the demonstration of table-top full field microscopes that use soft x-ray lasers for illumination. We have achieved wavelength resolution and single shot exposure operation with a very compact 46.9 nm microscope based on a desk-top size capillary discharge laser. This {lambda}-46.9 nm microscope has been used to capture full field images of a variety of nanostructure systems and surfaces. In a separate development we have demonstrated a zone plate microscope that uses {lambda}=13.2 nm laser illumination to image absorption defects in an extreme ultraviolet lithography (EUVL) mask in the same geometry used in a 4x demagnification EUVL stepper. Characterization of the microscope’s transfer function shows it can resolve 55 nm half period patterns. With these capabilities, the {lambda}-13.2 nm microscope is well suited for evaluation of pattern and defect printability of EUVL masks for the 22 nm node

Influence of the electron beam emittance on the polarization of a laser-electron x-ray generator

In this paper we analyze the polarization of the x-ray radiation coming from laser-electron x-ray generator (LEXG). We obtain general relations connecting the polarization state of outgoing x-ray radiation to the polarization state of laser beam as well as to the parameters of electron beam. We demonstrate that finite electron beam emittance causes a partial depolarization of initially fully polarized x-ray radiation even when the laser beam is fully polarized. We demonstrate with a number of numerical experiments that finite electron beam emittance can in some cases fundamentally alter the polarization state of x-ray radiation as compared to the polarization state of x-ray radiation scattered by electron beam with a zero emittance. Possible applications of polarized LEXG’s radiation are discussed

Transverse Beam Profile Imaging of Few-Micrometer Beam Sizes Based on a Scintillator Screen

Standard beam profile measurements of high–brightness electron beams based on optical transition radiation (OTR) may be hampered by coherence effects induced by the microbunching instability which render a direct beam imaging impossible. As consequence, for modern linac based 4th generation light sources as the European XFEL which is currently under construction in Hamburg, transverse beam profile measurements are based on scintillating screen monitors. However, the resolution of a scintillator based monitor is limited due to intrinsic material properties and the observation geometry. In this report, a beam size measurement in the order of a few micrometer is presented using a LYSO scintillator, and discussed in view of the possible achievable resolution