52 research outputs found
High-Performance Multi-Mode Ptychography Reconstruction on Distributed GPUs
Ptychography is an emerging imaging technique that is able to provide
wavelength-limited spatial resolution from specimen with extended lateral
dimensions. As a scanning microscopy method, a typical two-dimensional image
requires a number of data frames. As a diffraction-based imaging technique, the
real-space image has to be recovered through iterative reconstruction
algorithms. Due to these two inherent aspects, a ptychographic reconstruction
is generally a computation-intensive and time-consuming process, which limits
the throughput of this method. We report an accelerated version of the
multi-mode difference map algorithm for ptychography reconstruction using
multiple distributed GPUs. This approach leverages available scientific
computing packages in Python, including mpi4py and PyCUDA, with the core
computation functions implemented in CUDA C. We find that interestingly even
with MPI collective communications, the weak scaling in the number of GPU nodes
can still remain nearly constant. Most importantly, for realistic diffraction
measurements, we observe a speedup ranging from a factor of to
depending on the data size, which reduces the reconstruction time remarkably
from hours to typically about 1 minute and is thus critical for real-time data
processing and visualization.Comment: work presented in NYSDS 201
Takagi-Taupin Description of X-ray Dynamical Diffraction from Diffractive Optics with Large Numerical Aperture
We present a formalism of x-ray dynamical diffraction from volume diffractive
optics with large numerical aperture and high aspect ratio, in an analogy to
the Takagi-Taupin equations for strained single crystals. We derive a set of
basic equations for dynamical diffraction from volume diffractive optics, which
enable us to study the focusing property of these optics with various grating
profiles. We study volume diffractive optics that satisfy the Bragg condition
to various degrees, namely flat, tilted and wedged geometries, and derive the
curved geometries required for ultimate focusing. We show that the curved
geometries satisfy the Bragg condition everywhere and phase requirement for
point focusing, and effectively focus hard x-rays to a scale close to the
wavelength.Comment: 18 pages, 12 figure
Ion beam lithography for Fresnel zone plates in X-ray microscopy
Fresnel Zone Plates (FZP) are to date very successful focusing optics for
X-rays. Established methods of fabrication are rather complex and based on
electron beam lithography (EBL). Here, we show that ion beam lithography (IBL)
may advantageously simplify their preparation. A FZP operable from the extreme
UV to the limit of the hard X-ray was prepared and tested from 450 eV to 1500
eV. The trapezoidal profile of the FZP favorably activates its 2nd order focus.
The FZP with an outermost zone width of 100 nm allows the visualization of
features down to 61, 31 and 21 nm in the 1st, 2nd and 3rd order focus
respectively. Measured efficiencies in the 1st and 2nd order of diffraction
reach the theoretical predictions
Complete Strain Mapping of Nanosheets of Tantalum Disulfide
Quasi-two-dimensional (quasi-2D) materials hold promise for future
electronics because of their unique band structures that result in electronic
and mechanical properties sensitive to crystal strains in all three dimensions.
Quantifying crystal strain is a prerequisite to correlating it with the
performance of the device, and calls for high resolution but spatially resolved
rapid characterization methods. Here we show that using fly-scan nano X-ray
diffraction we can accomplish a tensile strain sensitivity below 0.001% with a
spatial resolution of better than 80 nm over a spatial extent of 100 m on
quasi 2D flakes of 1T-TaS2. Coherent diffraction patterns were collected from a
100 nm thick sheet of 1T-TaS2 by scanning 12keV focused X-ray beam
across and rotating the sample. We demonstrate that the strain distribution
around micron and sub-micron sized 'bubbles' that are present in the sample may
be reconstructed from these images. The experiments use state of the art
synchrotron instrumentation, and will allow rapid and non-intrusive strain
mapping of thin film samples and electronic devices based on quasi 2D
materials
Evolution of vegetation and climate variability on the Tibetan Plateau over the past 1.74 million years
The Tibetan Plateau exerts a major influence on Asian climate, but its long-term environmental history remains largely unknown. We present a detailed record of vegetation and climate changes over the past 1.74 million years in a lake sediment core from the Zoige Basin, eastern Tibetan Plateau. Results show three intervals with different orbital- and millennial-scale features superimposed on a stepwise long-term cooling trend. The interval of 1.74–1.54 million years ago is characterized by an insolation-dominated mode with strong ~20,000-year cyclicity and quasi-absent millennial-scale signal. The interval of 1.54–0.62 million years ago represents a transitional insolation-ice mode marked by ~20,000- and ~40,000-year cycles, with superimposed millennial-scale oscillations. The past 620,000 years are characterized by an ice-driven mode with 100,000-year cyclicity and less frequent millennial-scale variability. A pronounced transition occurred 620,000 years ago, as glacial cycles intensified. These new findings reveal how the interaction of low-latitude insolation and high-latitude ice-volume forcing shaped the evolution of the Tibetan Plateau climate.publishedVersio
Self-absorption correction on 2D X-ray fluorescence maps
Abstract X-ray fluorescence mapping (XRF) is a highly efficient and non-invasive technique for quantifying material composition with micro and nanoscale spatial resolutions. Quantitative XRF analysis, however, confronts challenges from the long-lasting problem called self-absorption. Moreover, correcting two-dimensional XRF mapping datasets is particularly difficult because it is an ill-posed inverse problem. Here we report a semi-empirical method that can effectively correct 2D XRF mapping data. The correction error is generally less than 10% from a comprehensive evaluation of the accuracy in various configurations. The proposed method was applied to quantify the composition distribution around the grain boundaries in an electrochemically corroded stainless steel sample. Highly localized Cr enrichment was found around the crack sites, which was invisible before the absorption correction
- …