The present disclosure relates to the production and use of a multi-layer X-ray source target. In certain implementations, layers of X-ray generating material may be interleaved with thermally conductive layers. To prevent delamination of the layers, various mechanical, chemical, and structural approaches are related, including approaches for reducing the internal stress associated with the deposited layers and for increasing binding strength between layers.

Technology is described for an anode including a substrate, a target, and an anode shield. The substrate including a substrate material includes a first portion with a first cross-sectional dimension, and a second portion with a second cross-sectional dimension greater than the first cross-sectional dimension. The target includes a target material attached to a first surface of the first portion of the substrate. The anode shield includes a shield material attached to a second surface of the second portion of the substrate, and the substrate material differs from the target material and the shield material.

The present invention is intended to provide improved patterned X-ray emitting targets as well as X-ray sources that include patterned X-ray emitting targets as well as X-ray reflectance scatterometry (XRS) systems and also including X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) systems and X-ray fluorescence (XRF) systems which employ such X-ray emitting targets.

The present disclosure relates to a brazing structure. The brazing structure may comprise a first portion and a second portion. At least one of the first portion or the second portion may include a connection-reinforcing surface. The connection-reinforcing surface may include a groove region and a filler placement region. The filler placement region may be configured to hold a filler material in solid state before brazing. The groove region may include a plurality of grooves where the filler material flows into after being melted. The first portion and the second portion may be connected by a braze joint formed by the filler material.

The rotatable anode of a rotating anode X-ray source has demanding requirements placed upon it. For example, it may rotate at a frequency as high as 200 Hz. X-ray emission is stimulated by applying a large voltage to the cathode, causing electrons to collide with the focal track. The focal spot generated at the electron impact position may have a peak temperature between 2000° C. and 3000° C. The constant rotation of the rotating anode protects the focal track to some extent, however the average temperature of the focal track immediately following a CT acquisition protocol may still be around 1500° C. Therefore, demanding requirements are placed upon the design of the rotating anode. The present application proposes a multi-layer coating for the target region of a rotating X-ray anode which improves mechanical resilience and thermal resilience, whilst reducing the amount of expensive refractory metals required.

A transmission-target x-ray tube can include an x-ray window 12 mounted on a window-housing 13. The window-housing 13 can be made of a high density material with a high atomic number, and can include an aperture 13.sub.a with an increasing-inner-diameter region 23 for blocking x-rays and electrons.

An electron source irradiates a target by inclining an electron beam at a predetermined irradiation angle θ with respect to a perpendicular to a target substrate. In this way, it is possible to extract grating-shaped X-rays in a direction perpendicular to the target substrate. The target substrate includes a substance containing a light element. On a surface of the target substrate, a plurality of grooves periodically disposed in a one-dimensional or two-dimensional direction to have a grating shape is formed. X-ray generating portions are arranged in a grating shape by being embedded in the plurality of grooves formed in the target substrate. The X-ray generating portions are made of a metal including W, Ta, Pt or Au or an alloy thereof. A depth M of the X-ray generating portions arranged in the grating shape is set within a predetermined range. The generation efficiency of X-rays for phase imaging is improved.

The present disclosure relates to multi-layer X-ray sources having decreased hydrogen within the layer stack and/or tungsten carbide inter-layers between the primary layers of X-ray generating and thermally-conductive materials. The resulting multi-layer target structures allow increased X-ray production, which may facilitate faster scan times for inspection or examination procedures.

The rotatable anode of a rotating anode X-ray source has demanding requirements placed upon it. For example, it may rotate at a frequency as high as 200 Hz. X-ray emission is stimulated by applying a large voltage to the cathode, causing electrons to collide with the focal track. The focal spot generated at the electron impact position may have a peak temperature between 2000 C. and 3000 C. The constant rotation of the rotating anode protects the focal track to some extent, however the average temperature of the focal track immediately following a CT acquisition protocol may still be around 1500 C. Therefore, demanding requirements are placed upon the design of the rotating anode. The present application proposes a multi-layer coating for the target region of a rotating X-ray anode which improves mechanical resilience and thermal resilience, whilst reducing the amount of expensive refractory metals required.

An analytical X-ray tube with an anode target material that emits characteristic X-rays in response to excitation by an electron beam may include any of several advantageous features. The target material is deposited on a diamond substrate layer, and a metal carbide intermediate layer may be provided between the target material and substrate that provides enhanced bonding therebetween. An interface layer may also be used that provides an acoustic impedance matching between the target material and the substrate. For a low thermal conductivity target material, a heat dissipation layer of a higher thermal conductivity material may also be included between the target material and substrate to enhance thermal transfer. The target material may have a thickness that corresponds to a maximum penetration depth of the electrons of the electron beam, and the structure may be such that a predetermined temperature range is maintained at the substrate interface.