Soft-x-ray laser interferometry of a plasma with a tabletop laser and a Lloyd's mirror

Probing three-dimensional mesoscopic interfacial structures in a single view using multibeam X-ray coherent surface scattering and holography imaging

Visualizing surface-supported and buried planar mesoscale structures, such as nanoelectronics, ultrathin-film quantum dots, photovoltaics, and heterogeneous catalysts, often requires high-resolution X-ray imaging and scattering. Here, we discovered that multibeam scattering in grazing-incident reflection geometry is sensitive to three-dimensional (3D) structures in a single view, which is difficult in conventional scattering or imaging approaches. We developed a 3D finite-element-based multibeam-scattering analysis to decode the heterogeneous electric-field distribution and to faithfully reproduce the complex scattering and surface features. This approach further leads to the demonstration of hard-X-ray Lloyd's mirror interference of scattering waves, resembling dark-field, high-contrast surface holography under the grazing-angle scattering conditions. A first-principles calculation of the single-view holographic images resolves the surface patterns' 3D morphology with nanometer resolutions, which is critical for ultrafine nanocircuit metrology. The holographic method and simulations pave the way for single-shot structural characterization for visualizing irreversible and morphology-transforming physical and chemical processes in situ or operando.

Design of a phase-shifting interferometer in the extreme ultraviolet for high-precision metrology

The design of a phase-shift interferometer in the extreme ultraviolet (EUV) is described. The interferometer is expected to achieve a significantly higher precision as compared with similar instruments that utilize lasers in the visible range. The interferometer's design is specifically adapted for its utilization with a table top pulsed capillary discharge EUV laser. The numerical model evaluates the errors in the interferograms and in the retrieved wavefront induced by the shot-to-shot fluctuations and pointing instabilities of the laser.

Mo/Si multilayer-coated amplitude-division beam splitters for XUV radiation sources

Amplitude-division beam splitters for XUV radiation sources have been developed and extensively characterized. Mo/Si multilayer coatings were deposited on 50 nm-thick SiN membranes. By changing the multilayer structure (periodicity, number of bilayers, etc.) the intensity of the reflected and transmitted beams were optimized for selected incident radiation parameters (wavelength, incident angle). The developed optical elements were characterized by means of XUV reflectometry and transmission measurements, atomic force microscopy and optical interferometry. Special attention was paid to the spatial homogeneity of the optical response and reflected beam wavefront distortions. Here the results of the characterization are presented and improvements required for advanced applications at XUV free-electron lasers are identified. A flatness as low as 4 nm r.m.s. on 3 × 3 mm beam splitters and 22 nm r.m.s. on 10 × 10 mm beam splitters has been obtained. The high-spatial-frequency surface roughness was about 0.7-1 nm r.m.s. The middle-spatial-frequency roughness was in the range 0.2-0.8 nm r.m.s. The reflection and transmission of the beam splitters were found to be very homogeneous, with a deviation of less than 2% across the full optical element.

Single-shot picosecond interferometry with one-nanometer resolution for dynamical surface morphology using a soft X-ray laser

Using highly coherent radiation at a wavelength of 13.9 nm from a Ag-plasma soft X-ray laser, we constructed a pump-and-probe interferometer based on a double Lloyd's mirror system. The spatial resolutions are evaluated with a test pattern, showing 1.8-mum lateral resolution, and 1-nm depth sensitivity. This instrument enables a single-shot observation of the surface morphology with a 7-ps time-resolution. We succeeded in observing a nanometer scale surface dilation of Pt films at the early stage of the ablation process initiated by a 70 fs near infrared pump pulse.

A Fourier transform spectrometer without a beam splitter for the vacuum ultraviolet range: From the optical design to the first UV spectrum

We describe a Fourier transform (FT) spectrometer designed to operate down to 60 nm (20 eV) on a synchrotron radiation beamline for high resolution absorption spectrometry. As far as we know, such an instrument is not available below 140 nm mainly because manufacturing accurate and efficient beam splitters remains a major problem at these wavelengths, especially if a wide bandwidth operation is desired. In order to overcome this difficulty, we developed an interferometer based on wave front division instead of amplitude division. It relies on a modified Fresnel bimirror configuration that requires only flat mirrors. The instrument provides path difference scanning through the translation of one reflector. During the scanning, the moving reflector is controlled by an optical system that keeps its direction constant within a tolerable value and provides an accurate interferometric measurement of the path difference variation. Therefore, a regular interferogram sampling is obtained, producing a nominal spectral impulse response and an accurate spectral calibration. The first results presented in this paper show a measured spectral resolution of delta(sigma)=0.33 cm-1 (interval between spectral samples). This was obtained with a sampling interval of 29 nm (path difference) and 512 K samples from a one-sided interferogram using a cosine FT. Such a sampling interval should allow the recording of large bandwidth spectra down to lambda=58 nm with an ultimate resolving power of 500,000 at this wavelength. In order to check the instrument performances, we first recorded an interferogram from a He-Ne stabilized laser. This provided the actual spectral impulse function, which was found to be fully satisfactory. The determination of the impulse response distortion and of the noise on the vacuum ultraviolet (VUV) spectral range provided accurate information in the sampling error profile over a typical scan. Finally, the instrument has been moved to the SU5 undulator-based synchrotron radiation beamline (Super-ACO facility, LURE, Orsay, France). A high resolution spectrum of O2 (the Schumann-Runge absorption bands, 185-200 nm) was computed from recorded interferograms using the beamline monochromator at the zeroth order to feed the instrument with an 11% relative bandwidth "white" beam (2003). These UV measurements are very close to those found in the literature, showing nominal performances of the FT spectrometer that should translate into an unprecedented resolving power at shortest VUV wavelengths. A recent upgrade (2007) and future developments will be discussed in light of the current installation of the upgraded FT spectrometer as a permanent endstation for ultrahigh resolution absorption spectrometry on the VUV beamline DESIRS at SOLEIL, the new French third generation synchrotron facility.

Dynamics of a dense laboratory plasma jet investigated using soft x-ray laser interferometry

The formation and evolution of a collisional aluminum plasma jet created by optical laser irradiation of triangular grooves with pulses of 120ps duration at an intensity of 1x10(12)W cm(-2) were studied with experiments and simulations. Series of high-contrast soft x-ray laser interferograms obtained with a 46.9nm laser mapped the plasma density evolution of an initially narrow plasma jet that expands along the symmetry plane and evolves into a broader plasma plume with significant side lobes. Two-dimensional simulations performed using the radiation hydrodynamic code HYDRA reveal that the jet formation is initiated by accelerated material ablated from the vertex and is augmented by the continual sequential arrival of wall material along the symmetry plane, where it collides and is redirected outward. Radiative cooling is identified as an important process in maintaining the collimation of the jet. These results demonstrate that well collimated collisional plasma jets with parameters in a range of interest can be generated with low-energy laser pulses (<1J) , opening the possibility of studying relevant plasma phenomena in a small laboratory setting.

Prediction and observation of tin and silver plasmas with index of refraction greater than one in the soft x-ray range

We present the calculated prediction and the experimental confirmation that doubly ionized Ag and Sn plasmas can have an index of refraction greater than one for soft x-ray wavelengths. Interferometry experiments conducted using a capillary discharge soft x-ray laser operating at a wavelength of confirm that in few times ionized laser-created plasmas of these elements the anomalous dispersion from bound electrons can dominate the free electron contribution, making the index of refraction greater than one. The results confirm that bound electrons can strongly influence the index of refraction of numerous plasmas over a broad range of soft x-ray wavelengths confirming recent observations. The understanding of index of refraction at short wavelengths will become even more essential during the next decade as x-ray free electron lasers will become available to probe a wider variety of plasmas at higher densities and shorter wavelengths.

Observation of a multiply ionized plasma with index of refraction greater than one

We present clear experimental evidence showing that the contribution of bound electrons can dominate the index of refraction of laser-created plasmas at soft x-ray wavelengths. We report anomalous fringe shifts in soft x-ray laser interferograms of Al laser-created plasmas. The comparison of measured and simulated interferograms shows that this results from the dominant contribution of low charge ions to the index of refraction. This usually neglected bound electron contribution can affect the propagation of soft x-ray radiation in plasmas and the interferometric diagnostics of plasmas for many elements.

Picosecond-resolution soft-x-ray laser plasma interferometry

We describe a soft-x-ray laser interferometry technique that allows two-dimensional diagnosis of plasma electron density with picosecond time resolution. It consists of the combination of a robust high-throughput amplitude-division interferometer and a 14.7-nm transient-inversion soft-x-ray laser that produces approximately 5-ps pulses. Because of its picosecond resolution and short-wavelength scalability, this technique has the potential for extending the high inherent precision of soft-x-ray laser interferometry to the study of very dense plasmas of significant fundamental and practical interest, such as those investigated for inertial confinement fusion. Results of its use in the diagnostics of dense large-scale laser-created plasmas are presented.

Highly directive 18.9 nm nickel-like molybdenum x-ray laser operating at 150 mJ pump energy

We experimentally demonstrate that by longitudinally pumping 2 mm long molybdenum preformed plasma with high-intensity 475 fs duration laser pulse, a highly directive soft-x-ray laser at 18.9 nm wavelength is generated. The divergence of the beam is evaluated to be of the submilliradian order, and only requires a pump laser energy of 150 mJ.

Picosecond x-ray laser interferometry of dense plasmas

We present the first results from picosecond interferometry of dense laser-produced plasmas using a soft x-ray laser. The picosecond duration and short wavelength of the 14.7 nm Ni-like Pd laser mitigates effects associated with motion blurring and refraction through millimeter-scale plasmas. This enables direct measurement of the electron-density profile to within 10 microm of the target surface. A series of high-quality two-dimensional (2D) density measurements provide unambiguous characterization of the time evolution in a fast-evolving plasma suitable for validation of existing 1D and 2D hydrodynamic codes.

Dense plasma diagnostics with an amplitude-division soft-x-ray laser interferometer based on diffraction gratings

We report the demonstration of an amplitude-division soft-x-ray interferometer that can be used to generate high-contrast interferograms at the wavelength of any of the saturated soft-x-ray lasers (5.6-46.9 nm) that are available at present. The interferometer, which utilizes grazing-incidence diffraction gratings as beam splitters in a modified Mach-Zehnder configuration, was used in combination with a tabletop 46.9-nm laser to probe a large-scale (~2.7-mm-long) laser-created plasma.

Soft-x-ray laser interferometry of a pinch discharge using a tabletop laser

We have used a tabletop soft-x-ray laser and a wave-front division interferometer to probe the plasma of a pinch discharge. A very compact capillary discharge-pumped Ne-like Ar laser emitting at 46.9 nm was combined with a wave division interferometer based on Lloyd's mirror and Sc-Si multilayer-coated optics to map the electron density in the cathode region of the discharge. This demonstration of the use of tabletop soft-x-ray laser in plasma interferometry could lead to the widespread use of these lasers in the diagnostics of dense plasmas.