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The method of microscopic imaging using X-rays and diffractive lenses was developed at synchrotron radiation facilities and it was recently transferred to systems with laboratory X-ray sources. The first part of this thesis focuses on instrumentation, in particular on the fabrication, characterization, and application of multilayer Laue lenses (MLL). The second part describes a micromechanical in-situ test that is used to study crack propagation with X-ray microscopy in microchips in a dedicated fracture mechanics experiment called micro double cantilever beam test (MicroDCB).
MLLs were fabricated from WSi2/Si multilayer coatings using mechanical preparation and focused ion beam milling. Initial characterization of the obtained lenses using scanning electron microscopy and X-ray microscopy was used to evaluate the quality of the multilayer stack and particularly to identify geometrical imperfections of individual lens elements. Crossed partial MLLs were assembled as a compact lens device for two-dimensional operation, i.e. point focusing of synchrotron radiation or full-field transmission imaging. The optical properties were simulated using a geometrical optics approximation and a physical optics model. Experimental results verify full-field imaging using crossed partial MLLs with a focal length of 8.0 mm for Cu-Ka radiation in a laboratory X-ray microscope. Sub-100 nm resolution is shown and remaining aberrations are discussed. So-called wedged MLLs employ dynamic diffraction to increase the diffraction efficiency. A fabrication process is presented that allows a subsequent geometrical modification of the lens element using a stress layer. Thus, the wedged geometry is realized independently of the multilayer coating. The resulting layer tilt is measured using a laboratory X-ray microscope. First investigations of such wedged MLLs with synchrotron radiation at a photon energy E=15.25 keV show an enhancement of the diffraction efficiency of 57 % in comparison to a tilted MLL with the same dimensions.
The long working distance of the X-ray microscope facilitates the integration of customized equipment to perform in-situ experiments. The MicroDCB tester was designed and built to drive a crack in an appropriately prepared specimen. It is compatible with the X-ray microscope and it allows tomographic studies under load. In particular, the method was applied to investigate crack propagation in the on-chip interconnect stack of advanced microelectronics products. Stable crack propagation at this location was achieved. Subsequent tomographies were acquired at several load steps. The reconstructed datasets show no critical distortions. This test is assumed to provide valuable information about crack propagation such heterogeneous structures, what is of interest to address reliability issues.