Soft X-ray microscope with zone plate at UVSOR

A soft X-ray microscope with zone plates was set up at UVSOR [synchrotron radiation facility (750MeV, 200mA) at Institute for Molecular Science, Okazaki, Japan]. A 50nm line & space pattern could be resolved at λ=3.2nm. With an environmental chamber (wet cell) using SiN windows, wet biological specimens, such as letus protoplasts, rabbit myofibrils, tubulin of COS cell and Deinococcus radiodurans strains, could be observed at λ=2.5nm. In the present microscope, the numerical aperture of the condenser was much smaller than that of the objective. To adjust both the numerical apertures, an ellipsoidal condenser mirror system was tested, and preliminary result (an image of Cu mesh, 12.7μm pitch) was obtained.