Efficiency of an elliptically shaped x-ray mirror

Inna N. Bukreeva, Sultan B. Dabagov, and Stefano Lagomarsino

Curved reflecting mirrors are widely used as x-ray optical elements for both laboratory and synchrotron
radiation sources. In general, the mirror parameters are optimized by numerical simulation. We
discuss an analytical approach that is useful for deriving the mirror parameters, including eccentricity,
length, angular acceptance, and magnification. We have examined in particular an elliptical surface
from which we learned that, given the distance between the foci of the ellipse, the magnification, and the
critical angle of total external reflection, it is possible to find analytically the optimal eccentricity that
maximizes the angular acceptance and the optimal mirror length. We found that the last-named
parameter, in a first approximation, depends only on the distance between the foci of the ellipse and on
the magnification factor. We present as well a comparison of optimal parameters obtained with ana-
lytical calculation and with ray-tracing simulation that yielded good agreement. © 2004 Optical Society
of America
OCIS codes: 340.0340, 340.6720, 340.7460, 340.7470, 220.2560, 220.4830.

1. Introduction In this paper we deal with analysis of optical focusing

Since their discovery, x rays have found many inter-
esting applications in various fields of modern phys-
ics such as radiography, structural, and
compositional analysis. It was realized early that
serious difficulties exist in designing efficient optical
elements for x rays because the refractive index is
close to unity in this region and because absorption is
always present. Nevertheless, good stimuli for the
development of innovative x-ray optics came on the
one hand from the improved resolution compared
with that of visible optics that is due to shorter wave-
lengths and on the other hand from the better pene-
trating power of x rays than electrons. The
brilliance of third-generation x-ray synchrotron
sources and technological advances in surface prep-
aration techniques and manufacturing have facili-
tated development of x-ray focusing optics that
produce submicrometer beams1–3 based on refrac-
tion,4,5 diffraction,6 –10 or total reflection11–20 effects.
I. N. Bukreeva and S. Lagomarsino 共stefano.lagomarsino@
ifn.cnr.it兲 are with the Istituto Fotonica e Nanotecnologie, Con-
siglio Nazionale delle Ricerche, V. Cineto Romano 42, 00156 Rome,
Italy. S. B. Dabagov is with the Laboratori Nazionali di Frascati,
Istituto Nazionale di Fizica Nucleare, Via E. Fermi 40, 00044
Frascati 共RM兲, Italy. I. N. Bukreeva and S. Dabagov are also with
the P. N. Lebedev Physics Institute, Russian Academy of Sciences,
Leninsky Prospekt 53, 119991 Moscow, Russia.
Received 23 December 2003; revised manuscript received 15
June 2004; accepted 16 September 2004.
0003-6935兾04兾346270-08$15.00兾0
© 2004 Optical Society of America
elements based on total external reflection. X rays
impinging upon a surface are totally reflected if the
grazing-incidence angles are smaller than the crit-
ical angle for total reflection, ␪c. For ␪ ⬎ ␪c the
reflectivity falls rapidly to low values. Critical an-
gles are quite small 共␪c ° ⬃ 1–3 ␭关nm兴兲, and there-
fore grazing-incidence optics have small angular
apertures. Increasing collection angles requires
relatively long mirrors, which essentially lead to a
broadening of the focal spot for focusing optics and
complicates the technological problem of high pre-
cision in figuring a profile and extremely low rough-
ness along the whole reflecting surface. Despite
these difficulties, x-ray optics based on total reflec-
tion have been highly successful. In particular, the
Kirkpatrick–Baez geometry with two mirrors crossed
at 90° with respect to each other has recently at-
tained outstanding performance with an extremely
accurate figuring profile 共slope error smaller than 1
␮rad兲 and surface roughness of fractions of a nano-
meter, producing a 100 nm ⫻ 100 nm spot size with
third-generation synchrotron radiation sources.12
It is evident that the results of experiments on the
focusing of x-ray beams depend strongly on the opti-
mization of an optical device. Mirror design and se-
lection of relevant parameters are in general carried
out by use of numerical simulations with ray-tracing
codes. Our aim was to develop an analytical ap-
proach to the solution of an optimization problem21–25
to compare the various parameters in a rigorous way
and to find the best solution by an a priori approach,
starting from specific conditions 共e.g., distance from

6270 APPLIED OPTICS 兾 Vol. 43, No. 34 兾 1 December 2004


Fig. 1. Schematic of an elliptical surface. A mirror 共bold arc兲 is
part of the ellipse. Polar system coordinates with origin at focal
point F1.
source to focal point, wavelength, mirror material兲.
In this paper we describe this approach, starting from
the ideal point-to-point focusing element, i.e., a por-
tion of an elliptical surface with source and image
points in the ellipse foci. We have treated the prob-
lem in a planar approximation, considering a cylinder
with elliptical basis in the XY plane 共see Fig. 1兲.
2. Elliptical Mirror
As is known, an ellipse is an ideal focusing element
because rays emitted from one point focus, F1, are
perfectly focused into a second focus, F2. The geom-
etry of such a scheme is shown in Fig. 1. The equa-
tion for an ellipse in polar coordinates centered on
focal point F1 共Fig. 1兲 is written as
␳共␸兲 ⫽
P
1 ⫺ e cos ␸
, 冏
1 ⫺ e2
P⫽c , (1)
e
where P is the focal parameter, c is the focal distance
共F1 F2 ⫽ 2c兲, and e is the eccentricity.
The effective reflecting mirror surface is limited by
the condition that the grazing angles of rays emitted
by point source F1, to be reflected with high efficiency
by the surface, must not exceed critical angle ␪c for
total external reflection:
␪ ⬍ ␪ c, ␪ c ⫽ 冑2␦, (2)
where ␦ is the real part of the dielectric constant of
the reflecting surface material. For a Ni surface and
x-ray radiation of wavelength ␭ ⫽ 0.1 nm the critical
angle is ␪c ⬇ 5 ⫻ 10⫺3 rad.
For a given ellipse, grazing angle ␪ expressed as a
function of polar coordinates ␳ and ␸ is given by
冏 冏
␳共␸兲 d␳
␪ ⫽ arctan , ␳⬘共␸兲 ⫽ . (3)
␳⬘共␸兲 d␸
Fig. 2. a, Dependence of grazing angle ␪ on polar angle ␸ 共along
an elliptical surface兲 for the rays emitted from focus F1 of the
ellipse. b, Enlarged view of the curve displaced in part a. The
minimum ␪0 and ␸0 values 关relation 共5兲兴 are indicated. Calcula-
tions were made for a Ni elliptical mirror 共␪c ⫽ 0.3°, ␭ ⫽ 0.1 nm兲
with eccentricity e ⫽ 1–1.25 ⫻ 10⫺6.
Taking Eq. 共1兲 into account, we have
冏 冏
1 ⫺ e cos ␸ ␸ 1⫺e
␪ ⫽ arctan ⬇ ⫹ . (4)
e sin ␸ 2 ␸
This approximation was made with the assumption
that 兩1 ⫺ e兩 ⬍⬍ 1 and cos ␸ ⬇ 1 ⫺ ␸2兾2. This ap-
proach is well justified for grazing-incidence optics.
Variation of grazing angle ␪ along the elliptical
surface as a function of polar angle ␸ is presented in
Fig. 2. As can be seen, this dependence is not mono-
tonic, and it has a minimum ␪0 that corresponds to a
␸0 value that we can find simply by equating to zero
the derivative of relation 共4兲. The expression for ␪0
and ␸0 is given by
␪ 0 ⫽ ␸ 0 ⫽ arccos共e兲 ⫽ arctan
冑1 ⫺ e2
e
冏 ⬇ 冑2共1 ⫺ e兲.
(5)
The ␸0 values correspond to the intersections of the
ellipse with the 0Y axis.
For effective reflection the relation ␪c ⬎ ␪0 must be
fulfilled and the eccentricity of the ellipse must there-
fore satisfy the condition22
␪ c2
0⬍1⫺e⬍ ⫽ ␦. (6)
2
3. Effectively Reflecting Elliptical Surface
Let us investigate an elliptical surface with eccentric-
ity that satisfies condition 共6兲. For simplicity we
consider only semiaxis 0Y with positive values of co-
ordinates. Taking into account the ellipse’s symme-
try, we can make a similar calculation for negative
values of 0Y.
The maximal grazing-angle value for x rays radi-
ating from point source F1 and effectively reflected by
the mirror is ␪c and corresponds to both edges of a
mirror with angular coordinates ␸min and ␸max 共see
Fig. 3兲. In accordance with relation 共5兲, minimum
value ␪0 ⫽ arccos共e兲, corresponding to the center of
the mirror. If the eccentricity of the ellipse satisfies
1 December 2004 兾 Vol. 43, No. 34 兾 APPLIED OPTICS 6271
Fig. 3. The effectively reflecting surface of the mirror limited by
angular interval ⌽ ⫽ ␸max ⫺ ␸min is shown by the bold arc on the
ellipse.

condition 共6兲, the effectively reflecting surface is lim-

ited by the angular interval ⌽ ⫽ ␸max ⫺ ␸min 共Fig. 3兲.
The grazing angles of rays at edges of the mirror
are equal to critical angle ␪c. Substituting this value
into relation 共4兲, we have
Fig. 4. Critical circle given by Eq. 共12兲 共long-dashed curve兲 and its
intersection with the ellipse. The effectively reflecting mirror sur-
face is the portion of ellipse between the two intersection points
共shaded arc兲.

冏
␪ c ⫽ arctan
1 ⫺ e cos ␸
e sin ␸
. 冏 (7)
Let us write the equation for this curve. The el-
lipse’s eccentricity can be found from Eq. 共7兲:
An exact solution of Eq. 共7兲 can be found with two
roots, ␸min and ␸max 共Fig. 3兲. Taking into account cos ␪ c 1
condition 共6兲 and the fact that ␪c2兾2 ⬍⬍ 1, we can find e⫽ ⫽ . (11)
an approximate expression for angular acceptance of cos共␸ ⫺ ␪ c兲 sin ␸ tan ␪ c ⫹ cos ␸
the effectively reflecting part of the ellipse21:
Substitution of e into Eq. 共1兲 and simple trigonometric
calculations give the next expression for polar coor-
⌽ ⫽ ␸ max ⫺ ␸ min ⬇ 2关␪ c ⫺ 2共1 ⫺ e兲兴
2 1兾2
,
dinates of the extreme points:
␸ 共min兲max ⬇ ␪ c ⫾ 关␪ c2 ⫺ 2共1 ⫺ e兲兴 1兾2,

冋 冉 冊册
(8)
c ␲
where a minus corresponds to ␸min and a plus to ␸max. ␳⫽2 cos ␸ ⫹ ⫺ 2␪ c . (12)
Angular acceptance has a minimal value ⌽min ⫽ 0 if sin 2␪ c 2
the eccentricity is e ⫽ cos ␪c 共or 1 ⫺ e ⬇ ␪c2兾2兲 and has
a maximal value ⌽max ⫽ 2␪c if eccentricity e ⫽ 1 共i.e., Equation 共12兲 shows that the curve that limits the
for a parabolic surface兲. effective size of the mirror is a circle 共the so-called
Length L 共Fig. 3兲 of an effectively reflecting surface critical circle; Fig. 4兲 crossing the ellipse’s focal
can be considered to be equal to its projection on axis points. If the origin of polar coordinates is located in
0X. Using the exact solution of Eq. 共7兲, we obtained focal point F1, the center of the circle has the coordi-
nates

冉 冊
L ⫽ ␳ min cos ␸ min ⫺ ␳ max cos ␸ max

冋 册
c ␲
2共1 ⫺ e兲
1兾2
␳ cr ⫽ , ␸ cr ⫽ ⫺ ⫺ 2␪ c . (13)
⬇ 2c 1 ⫺ . (9) sin 2␪ c 2
␪ c2
The radius of the critical circle, Rcr, is
Length L can be also expressed as a function of an-
gular acceptance ⌽:
c
R cr ⫽ . (14)
sin ⌽ ⌽ sin 2␪ c
L ⫽ 2c ⬇c . (10)
sin 2␪ c ␪c The equation for the circle in a Cartesian coordinate
Relation 共9兲 shows that the positions of the mirror’s system is
extreme points depend on focal distance c, eccentric-
ity e, and critical angle ␪c. If parameters c and ␪c are c2
共 y ⫹ c cot 2␪ c兲 2 ⫹ x 2 ⫽ . (15)
fixed and eccentricity e is changing continuously sin2 2␪ c
within the interval 关cos ␪c, 1兴, the extreme points 共the
edges of a mirror兲 describe a specific curve that limits The center of the circle is located on the 0Y axis and
the length of the effective reflecting mirror surface. has coordinates 共x0, y0兲 ⫽ 共0, ⫺c兾tan 2␪c兲.

6272 APPLIED OPTICS 兾 Vol. 43, No. 34 兾 1 December 2004

Fig. 5. Schematic of a focusing mirror. Magnification parameter
M is given by Eq. 共16兲.

4. Focusing Elliptical Mirror

In general, elliptical mirrors are used as focusing Fig. 6. The parts of the magnification circles are shown as bold
devices and produce demagnified images of the curves. For illustration purposes we considered ␪c ⫽ 10°; other-
source. In what follows, we give an expression for wise, for more-realistic grazing angles, all the circles would appear
the position of an elliptical focusing mirror that pro- as straight lines.
vides the maximal value of angular acceptance ⌽ for
a given value of magnification parameter M.
coordinates 共␸mag, ␳mag兲. For M ⬍ 1 共demagnifica-
In analogy to the thin-lens equation, the magnifi-
tion兲 the coordinates are equal to
cation of an elliptical mirror is usually defined as
␸ mag ⫽ 0,
␳1
M⫽ , ␳ ⫹ ␳ 1 ⫽ 2a, (16) 2c
␳ ␳ mag ⫽ . (20)
1 ⫺ M2
where ␳ is the object distance, i.e., the distance from
the source to the middle of the mirror, and ␳1 is the For magnification 共M ⬎ 1兲 they are equal to
image distance and is equal to the distance from the ␸ mag ⫽ ␲,
center of the mirror to the focal spot 共see Fig. 5兲.
This simple definition of M does not take into account 2c
the fact that different parts of the mirror give differ- ␳ mag ⫽ . (21)
M ⫺12
ent values of magnification M. For an estimation of
the variation of parameter M along the reflecting For M ⫽ 1 共focusing without magnification兲, Eq. 共19兲
surface, an approximate equation can be written: is the equation for a line ␳ cos ␸ ⫽ c that is coincident
with axis 0Y.
␸2 Radius Rmag of the circle is equal to
M⬇ . (17)
2共1 ⫺ ε兲
Relation 共17兲 can be found if we take into account
R mag ⫽ 2c 冏 M
1 ⫺ M2
冏
. (22)
relation 共4兲 and condition 共6兲. However, in what fol-
lows, we do not take this effect into account and con- The equation of the circle 关Eq. 共19兲兴 in Cartesian sys-
sider magnification M as given simply by Eq. 共16兲. tem coordinates is
According to Eq. 共16兲, different confocal elliptical y 2 ⫹ 共 x ⫾ d mag兲 2 ⫽ R mag2. (23)
mirrors can have the same magnification M. Let us
find the positions of the middles of these mirrors that The center of the circle is located on axis 0X and has
correspond to the same M value. The object distance coordinates 共x0, y0兲 ⫽ 共dmag, 0兲. The value of param-
of the elliptical mirror can be found from the triangle eter dmag ⫽ ␳mag ⫹ c and the positive sign before dmag
F1 MF2 共Fig. 5兲: corresponds to M ⬎ 1; the value dmag ⫽ ␳mag ⫺ c and
the negative sign correspond to M ⬍ 1.
␳ 2 ⫹ 4c 2 ⫺ 4c␳ cos ␸ ⫽ ␳ 12 ⫽ M 2␳ 2. (18) Portions of circles that correspond to several values
of parameter M are shown in Fig. 6. In what follows,
Taking into account condition 共16兲, we can write Eq. we consider only focusing mirrors that provide a de-
共18兲 as magnified image of the source 共i.e., M ⬍ 1兲.

冉 冊 2 Using the critical and magnification circles de-

2c 2c M2 scribed above, we can find the expressions for the
␳ 2 ⫺ 2␳ 2 cos ␸ ⫹ ⫽ 4c 2 .
1⫺M 1 ⫺ M2 共1 ⫺ M 2兲 2 length and the position of an effectively reflecting
(19) surface of a focusing elliptical mirror. On one hand,
the area of effective reflection of the elliptical mirror
Equation 共19兲 describes a circle 共the magnification is restricted by the critical circle. On the other
circle兲 whose center is located on the axis 0X and has hand, the location of the center of the focusing mirror

1 December 2004 兾 Vol. 43, No. 34 兾 APPLIED OPTICS 6273

 Coordinates 共␳ex, ␸ex兲 of the exit edge of the mirror are
given by the intersection of the ellipse 关Eq. 共1兲兴 and
the critical circle 关Eq. 共12兲兴. We obtain
c 1 ⫺ e2
␳ ex ⫽ ,
e sin ␪ c ⫺ sin ␪ c共e 2 ⫺ cos2 ␪ c兲 1兾2
2

␸ ex ⫽ arccos 冋 cos2 ␪ c ⫹ sin ␪ c共e 2 ⫺ cos2 ␪ c兲 1兾2

e 册
⬇ ␪ c ⫺ 关␪ c2 ⫺ 2共1 ⫺ e兲兴 1兾2. (26)
Polar coordinates 共␳ent, ␸ent兲 of the entrance edge of
the mirror can be found if we take into account that
L
␳ ent cos ␸ ent ⫽ ␳ m cos ␸ m ⫺
2
⫽ 2␳ m cos ␸ m ⫺ ␳ ex cos ␸ ex, (27)
where L is the length of the mirror. Substitution of
Eq. 共1兲 into Eq. 共27兲 gives
Fig. 7. Shadowed area, location of the effectively reflecting sur-
face of the focusing mirror.
␳ ent ⫽ 2␳ m ⫺ ␳ ex,

␸ ent ⫽ arccos 冋冉
1
e
1⫺
P
2␳ m ⫺ ␳ ex
冊册
with fixed parameter M is determined by the magni-
fication circle. Therefore the middle of the mirror
should be situated on the magnification circle and the
冉
⬇ ␸m 2
⫹
␸ m2 ⫺ ␸ ex2
1⫺␣
冊 1兾2

, (28)

exit edge of the mirror should be located on the crit-
ical circle. We can find the position of the entrance
edge by taking into account that the length of the
mirror is double the distance along axis 0X between
the center and the exit edge of the mirror. As a
result, the whole mirror should be located within the
shaded area shown in Fig. 7.
It follows from Fig. 7 that angular coordinate ␸ of
the middle of the mirror should not exceed angular
coordinate ␸i of the point of intersection of the critical
and the magnification circles and that eccentricity e
should always be higher than ei that corresponds to
the ellipse crossing the point of intersection. Values
of ␸i and ei in accordance with Eqs. 共11兲 and 共12兲 and
relation 共19兲, are
␸ i ⬃ 2␪ c M,
cos ␪ c
ei ⫽ ␸ i ⬃ 1 ⫺ 2␪ c2M.
cos共␸ i ⫺ ␪ c兲
The coordinates of the middle of the mirror 共␳m, ␸m兲
can be found as the intersection of the ellipse 关Eq. 共1兲兴
and the magnification circle 关Eq. 共19兲兴:
c 2c
␳m ⫽ 共␳ 0 ⫺ R 0兲 ⫽ , Figure 8a shows the dependence of angular accep-
e e共1 ⫹ M兲
where P is the focal parameter 关Eq. 共1兲兴 and ␣ ⫽
共␸m2 ⫺ ␸ex2兲兾关共1 ⫺ e兲 共1 ⫹ M兲兴. Coordinates 共␳m, ␸m兲
and 共␳ex, ␸ex兲 are given by expressions 共25兲 and 共26兲.
The angular acceptance of the mirror is equal to
⌽共e兲 ⫽ ␸ ent ⫺ ␸ ex, (29)
where coordinates 共␳m, ␸m兲, 共␳ex, ␸ex兲, and 共␳ent, ␸ent兲
are defined by expressions 共25兲–共28兲. For M ⬍⬍ 1 the
approximate expression for the angular acceptance
关Eq. 共29兲兴 can be written as
⌽ 02
⌽共e兲 ⬇ 共2␸ m2 ⫺ ␸ ex2兲 1兾2 ⫺ ␸ ex ⬃ 2⌽ 0 ⫺ ,
⌽0 ⫹ ␸m
(30)
where ⌽0 ⫽ ␸m ⫺ ␸ex. Function ⌽共e兲 is not mono-
tonic and has a maximum ⌽max, which one can find
by equating to zero the derivative of ⌽共e兲. The ap-
(24) proximate value emax for the ellipse’s eccentricity cor-
responding to ⌽max is given by
␪ c2 M
e max ⬃ 1 ⫺ . (31)
2 1⫹M
One can find the value of ⌽max ⬃ 5兾6Mc from rela-
tions 共30兲 and 共31兲 by taking into account that
⌽0共emax兲 ⬇ ␪c关共M ⫹ 1兲1兾2 ⫺ 1兴 ⬃ ␪c M兾2.
tance ⌽ on 共1 ⫺ e兲 for M ⫽ 0.1. The elliptical mirror

␸ m ⫽ arccos 冋 1 ⫹ e 2 ⫺ M共1 ⫺ e 2兲
2e 册
⬇ 关2M共1 ⫺ e兲兴 1兾2.
with eccentricity emax has maximal angular accep-
tance ⌽max. The existence of a maximum for func-
tion ⌽共e兲 can be explained by the presence of two
(25) factors: On the one hand angular acceptance ⌽ in-

6274 APPLIED OPTICS 兾 Vol. 43, No. 34 兾 1 December 2004


Fig. 8. a Dependence of angular acceptance ⌽ on eccentricity e for
magnification parameter M ⫽ 0.1. b Dependence of maximal
angular acceptance ⌽max on magnification parameter M with op-
timal eccentricity emax. Calculations were made for a Ni elliptical
mirror 共␪c ⫽ 0.3°, ␭ ⫽ 0.1 nm兲.
creases because of the increase in the linear size of
the mirror, but on the other hand it decreases be-
cause of the decrease of the minor axis of the ellipse
共Fig. 8兲. Figure 8b shows the dependence of ⌽max on
magnification factor M with optimal eccentricity emax.
Corresponding values of 共1 ⫺ emax兲 are shown in the
top scale.
The position of the middle of the optimal mirror can
be found from expressions 共25兲 with relation 共31兲
taken into account. The length of the mirror is given
by
L ⫽ 2共␳ ex cos ␸ ex ⫺ ␳ m cos ␸ m兲
These expressions allow us easily to calculate eccen-
tricity normalized to ␪c2, maximal acceptance angle
normalized to ␪c, and optimal length normalized to 2c
共the distance between foci兲.
In Table 1 we list both the accurate values and, in
parentheses, the approximate values of the normal-
ized parameters for several values of magnification
M. The first column gives magnification factor M;
the second one, the value 共1 ⫺ e兲兾␪c2; the third one,
⌽max兾␪c; the fourth one, Lopt兾2c. As can be seen, for
high demagnification factors 共M ⬍⬍ 1兲 the accurate
and the approximate values practically coincide.
We also compared the reported results with ray-
tracing simulations for two cases: one for a synchro-
tron radiation source and the other for a laboratory
microsource. For both cases the simulation was
made with Ni and with Pt elliptical mirrors. We
calculated efficiency, defined as the ratio between the
number of photons in the focal spot and the number
of photons captured by the mirror, and gain, defined
as the ratio between the flux density in the focal spot
and the flux density in the incoming beam as a func-
tion of length. The result of our simulation is pre-
sented in Figs. 9a 共synchrotron source兲 and 9b
共laboratory microsource兲 for Ni mirrors. The opti-
mal length, derived from relation 共32兲, is also shown.
The relevant parameters 共eccentricity, magnification,
source size, focal distance, wavelength兲 for the two
cases are given in the figure caption. As can be seen,
efficiency goes down, and the curve of gain changes

冋冉 冊 册
1兾2 slope, in correspondence to the optimal length. This
1⫺e 1⫺M behavior can be explained as follows: On one hand,
⬇ 2c 1⫺ ⫺ . (32)
␪ c2兾2 1⫹M when the length of the mirror exceeds the optimal
value, the part of mirror nearest the focal point does
With expression 共31兲 taken into account, the length of not reflect because grazing angles exceed the critical
the optimal mirror is equal to angle. On the other hand, the part of the mirror

冉 2 ⫺ 冑1 ⫹ M
冊
nearest the source is still collecting x-ray radiation
L opt ⬇ 2c 1 ⫺ . (33) and the gain increases, but reflected rays do not con-
1⫹M tribute efficiently to image formation in the focus
because the extra length contributes mostly to blur-
When M ⬍⬍ 1, simple equations for estimation of ring of the focal spot. Note that analogous results
optimal parameters can be written: have been obtained for Pt mirrors: As expected,
with the same values of magnification and focal dis-
1 2
e opt ⬃ 1 ⫺ ␪ c M, (34a) tance the decrease in efficiency takes place for the
2 same length as for a Ni mirror. However, the emax
values are significantly different for the two cases
5 共1 ⫺ e ⫽ 1.16 ⫻ 10⫺7 for Ni and 1 ⫺ e ⫽ 2.07 ⫻ 10⫺7
⌽ max ⬃ ␪ c M, (34b)
6 for Pt for synchrotron radiation at ␭ ⫽ 0.1 nm, and
1 ⫺ e ⫽ 2.18 ⫻ 10⫺6 for Ni and 1 ⫺ e ⫽ 4.78 ⫻ 10⫺6
L opt ⬃ 3cM. (34c) for Pt for a laboratory microsource at ␭ ⫽ 0.154 nm兲.

Table 1. Estimation of Normalized Eccentricity, Relation 共31兲, Maximal Acceptance Angle, Relation 共30兲, and Optimal Length, Relation 共33兲,
for Several Magnification Valuesa

Magnification Normalized Eccentricity Maximal Acceptance Angle Optimal Length

M ⫽ ␳1兾␳ 共1 ⫺ e兲兾␪c2 ⌽max兾␪c Lopt兾2c

10⫺1 4.55 ⫻ 10⫺2 共⬃5.0 ⫻ 10⫺2兲 8.11 ⫻ 10⫺2 共⬃8.33 ⫻ 10⫺2兲 1.35 ⫻ 10⫺1 共⬃1.5 ⫻ 10⫺1兲
10⫺2 4.95 ⫻ 10⫺3 共⬃5.0 ⫻ 10⫺3兲 8.31 ⫻ 10⫺3 共⬃8.33 ⫻ 10⫺3兲 1.48 ⫻ 10⫺2 共⬃1.5 ⫻ 10⫺2兲
10⫺3 5.0 ⫻ 10⫺4 共⬃5.0 ⫻ 10⫺4兲 8.33 ⫻ 10⫺4 共⬃8.33 ⫻ 10⫺4兲 1.50 ⫻ 10⫺3 共⬃1.5 ⫻ 10⫺3兲
10⫺4 5.0 ⫻ 10⫺5 共⬃5.0 ⫻ 10⫺5兲 8.33 ⫻ 10⫺5 共⬃8.33 ⫻ 10⫺5兲 1.50 ⫻ 10⫺4 共⬃1.5 ⫻ 10⫺4兲
a
In parentheses we give the approximate values derived from relations 共34兲.

1 December 2004 兾 Vol. 43, No. 34 兾 APPLIED OPTICS 6275

Fig. 9. Efficiency and gain of the focusing Ni elliptical mirror relative to the length of the mirror evaluated by ray-tracing simulation. a,
Synchrotron radiation source with size S ⫽ 100 ␮m, wavelength ␭ ⫽ 0.1 nm, and mirror with eccentricity 1 ⫺ e ⫽ 1.16 ⫻ 10⫺7,
magnification factor M ⫽ 10⫺2, and distance between focal points 2c ⫽ 40 m. Optimal length Lopt 共dashed line兲 according to relation 共33兲,
Lopt ⬃ 0.6 m. b, Laboratory source with size S ⫽ 15 ␮m, wavelength ␭ ⫽ 0.154 nm, and mirror with eccentricity 1 ⫺ e ⫽ 2.18 ⫻ 10⫺6,
magnification factor M ⫽ 10⫺1, and distance between focal points 2c ⫽ 0.2 m. Optimal length Lopt 共dashed line兲 according to relation 共33兲,
Lopt ⬃ 0.027 m.

The ray-tracing simulations presented in Fig. 9 were
carried out with an eccentricity value corresponding
to that of emax.
5. Conclusions
An analytical approach to finding the optimal param-
eters of focusing elliptical mirrors has been carried
out. The main results of this analysis are summa-
rized here:
1. Eccentricity e of elliptical surfaces must satisfy
the condition 1 ⫺ e ⬍ ␦, where ␦ is the real part of the
dielectric constant. Otherwise, grazing-incidence
angles of rays emitted by the point source located in
the focus of the ellipse will exceed the critical angle.
2. The effective reflecting surface of a confocal
elliptical mirror is limited by the intersections of two
symmetrical circles 共critical circles兲 with the elliptical
surfaces. The conditions for total external reflection
for x rays are fulfilled only for the parts of the reflect-
ing surfaces that are located inside this area.
3. The middle points of confocal focusing elliptical
mirrors with given magnification parameter M are
located on a circle 共magnification circle兲. The effec-
tive reflecting surfaces of confocal mirrors are there-
fore limited by the intersections of the ellipse with the
critical circle and the magnification circle.
4. Given the distance from the source to the focal
point and the critical angle for total reflection, the
optimal parameters 共i.e., eccentricity, length, and po-
sition兲 of a focusing elliptical mirror that maximize
the collection angle can be found analytically.
5. The relevant parameters 共eccentricity, accep-
tance angle, optimal length兲 can easily be calculated
by simple approximate relations that are practically
coincident with the more-accurate ones for a high
demagnification factor.
6. Comparison of ray-tracing simulations for syn-
chrotron and laboratory sources has shown that effi-
ciency goes down for mirrors longer than the optimal
mirrors and that the extra length contributes to an
increase in blurring of the focal spot.
In conclusion, we have presented an analytical ap-
proach to providing a simple evaluation of x-ray op-
tics based on an elliptically shaped mirror. This
approach allows for easy calculations of relevant pa-
rameters but is not intended to substitute for ray-
tracing codes. Instead, it can be a complementary
tool for optimal design.
We are grateful to the project “Sorgente Pulsata
Auto-amplificata di Rediazione Coerente (SPARC)” of
Ministero dell’Istruzione, dell’Università e della
Ricerca for partial financial support. Useful discus-
sions with I. V. Kozhevnikov and A. V. Vinogradov
are gratefully acknowledged.
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