Experimental and theoretical study of Bragg-Fresnel focalizing optical systems engraved on multi layers interferential mirrors adapted to X and X-UV fields

This work concerns the study of a particular type of X-ray focusing optics known as Bragg-Fresnel lenses, formed through ion-etching of multilayered structures. Using the Super-ACO (LURE/Orsay) synchrotron storage ring, we tested several Bragg-Fresnel lenses having either linear or elliptical geometries (producing a line or a point focus, respectively). Diffraction profiles were first obtained for the linear lenses ion-etched on W/Si multilayers of nano-metric period. The experimental results were compared with our theoretical predictions. We next proposed and tested a solution to the problem superposing the different diffraction orders in the focal plane, that of fabricating Bragg-Fresnel lenses with an off-axis configuration, first for the linear and then the elliptical geometry. An experimental application, for an off-axis elliptical lens produced a focused X-ray spot of 5 x 10 microns2 for the Super-ACO synchrotron source. The same lens also produced a 1/3-size X-ray image of a grid-like object at 1750 eV using the first and third diffraction orders. (author)