Enhancing I18 and I07
At a time when Phase II beamlines are being built or have already become operational, Diamond’s scientists are busy enhancing further the capabilities of existing beamlines to meet the users’ needs, such as the Microfocus Spectroscopy beamline (I18) and the Surface and Interface Diffraction beamline (I07).
The performance of I18 has been improved with the installation of two new microfocusing mirrors. The new mechanical mirrors, that replace the bimorph ones that originally equipped the beamline, were commissioned with the beam in April 2010.
They run in a Helium atmosphere as opposed to vacuum, which their predecessors ran in. This means that a polymer cap can now be fitted instead of a Beryllium one, allowing the mirrors and samples to be roughly aligned with an inline laser beam. Other notable benefits deriving from their ease of use include enhanced focusing capabilities (down to 1.5 μm horizontally and vertically) as well as increased versatility in terms of beam size.
Dr Joanna Collingwood from Warwick University, who carries out her research on metal elements in the brain on I18, further explains the advantages of the new mirrors.
A defocused beam can be as useful as a tightly focused one. Before the mechanical mirrors were in place, it was sometimes necessary to move the sample out of the focal plane, and this introduced some difficulties when we wanted to compare data between samples. The new mechanical mirrors give us more choice in this regard, and the focus we are achieving is currently of good quality, and - very importantly - repeatable for the duration of a typical measurement.”
Dr Joanna Collingwood, University of Warwick
On the Surface and Interface Diffraction beamline (I07) the team is designing a new ultra high vacuum chamber dedicated to in-situ measurements and equipped with a comprehensive suite of surface science equipments (X-Ray photoelectron spectroscopy, Low Energy Electron Diffraction, Auger Spectroscopy and evaporation sources). The new chamber will enable the scientists not only to monitor in-situ growth but also to study phase changes as it will be possible to anneal samples up to 1200 °C or to cool them down to liquid Nitrogen temperature.
Dr Chris Nicklin, Principal Beamline Scientist for I07
The commissioning of the chamber will start in I07’s second experimental station in January 2011 and it is planned that it will be opened to users from March 2011 onwards. At about the same time, in February 2011, I07 users should have access to a new double crystal deflector that will make it possible to deflect the beam and change the incident angle without moving the sample. This capability could be used for instance when performing Grazing Incidence Small Angle X-ray Scattering (GISAXS) on liquids.