December 11, 2009

NSLS-II Project Unveils New Optics R&D Laboratory

The NSLS-II project has embarked on an ambitious program of optics R&D that is key to achieving the world-class synchrotron's flagship goals of nanoscale focusing and sub-meV energy resolution.

The entire east wing of building 703 has been renovated to provide 1,100 square feet of general lab space and 4,200 square feet of class 10,000 clean room space – meaning that the room is designed to allow in no more than 10,000 particles larger than 0.3 microns per cubic foot of air. Typical office buildings, by comparison, contain anywhere from 500,000 to one million particles per cubic foot of air. This new optics R&D area will provide cutting-edge capabilities in both reflective and transmission multilayer optics, crystal diffractive optics, surface metrology over a broad range of spatial resolutions, nanopositioning, and other nanofabrication required for the NSLS-II facility.

(From left) Ray Conley, NSLS-II Optics lead, with engineers John Feraca, Larry Boas, and Jimmy Leskowicz of CVD Equipment Corporation.

The new optics R&D laboratory supports optical surface metrology over a broad range of spatial resolutions, from atomic-force microscopy to microscopic stitching and large-area interferometry, with plans for larger spatial resolution and at-wavelength metrology in the works. Crystal diffractive optics fabrication capabilities currently or soon will include state-of-the-art crystal cutting, grinding, and machining, with a complete suite of surface finishing techniques including pad polishing, slurry polishing, pitch polishing, and different chemical etching processes. Custom shapes and orientations of diffractive (and some reflective) optics of up to 200 millimeters long can be produced.

The centerpiece of the optics R&D effort will be the new magnetron sputtering system, which was designed and built in collaboration with CVD Equipment Corporation in Ronkonkoma, NY. The magnetron system will deposit critical layers of film to produce the multi-layer lenses needed for x-ray focusing at NSLS-II. The system is comprised of a 23-foot, ultra-high vacuum chamber containing nine magnetron sputtering guns, four cryogenic pumps, and a high-precision, linear-motion platform to enable the guns to deposit a stack of multi-film layers. The automated system features will enable our team to conduct the two-week coating process with required precision, constant velocity, and repeatable results. The system is intended to fabricate a new type of x-ray focusing optic called a wedged multi-layer Laue lens, which will be up to 100 micrometers thick and with as many as 62,000 layers in a stack. In support of the thin-film deposition are a full set of thin-film characterization tools that include stylus profilometry, ellipsometry, x-ray reflectivity, and in-situ stress monitoring.

More details on the multi-layer deposition system can be found at: http://www.products.cvdequipment.com/applications/applicationnotes/2009/multilayer_laue_lens_deposition_system/