Quantitative x-ray phase tomography with sub-micron resolution

Tomographic X-ray phase reconstructions of an atomic force microscope tip with a spatial resolution of better than 900 nm are presented. The data was acquired using an X-ray energy of 1.83 keV using a zone plate based microscope at a third generation synchrotron, the Advanced Photon Source at the Argonne National Laboratory. The phase tomographic data is quantitatively accurate and we confirm that the deduced refractive index is in agreement with the known properties of the sample. Our results open the way for full 3D imaging of the complex refractive index with sub-micron spatial resolution.