Nanoscale zoom tomography with hard x rays using Kirkpatrick-Baez optics

To overcome the limitations in terms of spatial resolution and field of view of existing tomography techniques, a hard x-ray projection microscope is realized based on the sub-100-nm focus produced by Kirkpatrick-Baez optics. The sample is set at a small distance downstream of the focus and Fresnel diffraction patterns with variable magnification are recorded on a medium-resolution detector. While the approach requires a specific phase retrieval procedure and correction for mirror imperfections, it allows zooming nondestructively into bulky samples. Quantitative three-dimensional nanoscale microscopy is demonstrated on an aluminum alloy in local tomography mode.