Granted Patent B2

US 12,288,662 · App. 17/821,641 · Granted Apr 29, 2025

Inventors: Felix Düsberg (Munich, DE); Florian Schneider (Munich, DE); Michael Bachmann (Munich, DE); Andreas Pahlke (Brunnthal, DE)

Assignee: KETEK GmbH Halbleiter-und Reinraumtechnik

H01J35/186H01J5/18H01J2235/083H01J2235/084H01J2235/183

Abstract

Claims (49)

1. An X-ray source comprising:

an electron source configured to emit electrons;

an acceleration set-up configured to accelerate the emitted electrons; and

a transmission window downwards of the acceleration set-up, the transmission window configured to let through X-rays generated by the accelerated electrons,

wherein the transmission window comprises:

a carbon carrier,

a target layer carried by the carbon carrier, the target layer being located on a side of the carbon carrier facing the electron source, and

a bonding layer located between the target layer and the carbon carrier, the bonding layer being of at least one inorganic material and comprising at least one of an oxide or a nitride, and

wherein the carbon carrier comprises sp2-hybridized carbon.

2. The X-ray source of claim 1 , wherein a mass proportion of carbon of the carbon carrier is at least 95%.

3. The X-ray source of claim 2 , wherein the carbon carrier is of pyrolytic carbon.

4. The X-ray source of claim 1 , wherein the target layer is of at least one metal and is thinner than the carbon carrier.

5. The X-ray source of claim 1 , wherein a thickness of the target layer is at most 5 μm and a thickness of the carbon carrier is between 0.02 mm and 2 mm, inclusive.

6. The X-ray source of claim 1 , wherein the target layer is of at least one of W, Rh, Ag, Au, Mo or Pd.

7. The X-ray source of claim 1 ,

wherein a diameter of the carbon carrier is between 4 mm and 4 cm, inclusive, and

wherein the X-ray source is free of any auxiliary structures supporting a central part of the transmission window, seen in top view, where a focal spot of the accelerated electrons is located.

8. The X-ray source of claim 1 ,

wherein a focal spot of the accelerated electrons at the transmission window has a diameter of at least 0.1 mm and of at most 4 mm, and

wherein the X-ray source is configured for X-ray fluorescence spectroscopy.

9. The X-ray source of claim 1 ,

wherein a focal spot of the accelerated electrons at the transmission window has a diameter of at least 2 mm and of at most 20 mm, and

wherein the X-ray source is configured for ion mobility spectroscopy.

10. The X-ray source of claim 1 ,

wherein the X-ray source is an evacuated X-ray source between the electron source and the transmission window so that a pressure within the X-ray source is below 10 −3 mbar at 300 K, and

wherein a side of the transmission window remote from the electron source is configured to be at a pressure of 1 bar at 300 K.

11. The X-ray source of claim 1 , wherein an electric conductivity of the carbon carrier is at least 0.1 kS/m.

12. The X-ray source of claim 1 , wherein the electric conductivities of the carbon carrier in different directions differ from one another by at least a factor of 2.

13. The X-ray source of claim 1 , wherein the carbon carrier is optically non-transparent in a visible spectral range and has an absorption coefficient of at least 104 cm −1 at a wavelength of 600 nm.

14. The X-ray source of claim 1 , further comprising:

a window frame, wherein the window frame carries the transmission window and is attached on the acceleration set-up.

15. A transmission window comprising:

a carbon carrier comprising sp2-hybridized carbon;

a target layer carried by the carbon carrier, the target layer being located on a side of the carbon carrier facing an electron source; and

a bonding layer located between the target layer and the carbon carrier, the bonding layer being of at least one inorganic material and comprising at least one of an oxide or a nitride,

wherein the target layer is of at least one metal and is thinner than the carbon carrier, and

wherein the transmission window is configured for an X ray source.

16. An X-ray source comprising:

an electron source configured to emit electrons;

an acceleration set-up configured to accelerate the emitted electrons; and

a transmission window downwards of the acceleration set-up, the transmission window configured to let through X-rays generated by the accelerated electrons,

wherein the transmission window comprises a carbon carrier,

wherein the carbon carrier consists of pyrolytic carbon so that the carbon of the carbon carrier is predominantly sp2-hybridized,

wherein the carbon of the carbon carrier, in a deconvoluted Raman spectrum of the carbon carrier, has both a visible 2D-peak in a range between 2650 cm −1 and 2750 cm −1 , inclusive and a visible sp3-peak in a range between 1250 cm −1 and 1350 cm −1 , inclusive, and

wherein the visible 2D-peak, when measured with laser excitation at 532 nm, has, by at least a factor of two, a larger area content than the visible sp3-peak.

17. The X-ray source of claim 16 , wherein a thickness of the carbon carrier is between 0.02 mm and 2 mm, inclusive.

18. The X-ray source of claim 16 ,

wherein a diameter of the carbon carrier is between 4 mm and 4 cm, inclusive, and

wherein the X-ray source is free of any auxiliary structures supporting a central part of the transmission window, seen in top view, where a focal spot of the accelerated electrons is located.

Assignments (1)

Continuity (1)

References Cited (31)

Cited By (1)

US 12,488,956