TY - CHAP A1 - Cotroneo, Vincenzo A1 - Bruni, Ricardo A1 - Döhring, Thorsten A1 - Ferreira, Desiree A1 - Gibertini, Eugenio A1 - Henriksen, Peter A1 - Magagnin, Luca A1 - Massahi, Sonny A1 - Pareschi, Giovanni A1 - Romaine, Suzanne A1 - Sethares, Leandra A1 - Sironi, Giorgia A1 - Spiga, Daniele A1 - Tagliaferri, Gianpiero A1 - Valsecchi, Giuseppe T1 - Development of low-density coatings for soft x-ray reflectivity enhancement for ATHENA and other missions T2 - Proceedings of SPIE N2 - Metallic coatings made of precious metals (e.g. Ir, Pt or Au) with high atomic number Z have been traditionally employed at grazing incidence for X-rays reflection and focalization. These materials offer a range of reflection extended to higher energies, but also present a series of absorption edges, which limit the reflectivity in the 2-4 keV band and below. Therefore the search for alternative coatings, able to improve the reflection in the soft energy range, is particularly relevant for the development of future telescopes, like ATHENA (ESA), Lynx (NASA) and eXTP (CAS). Low-Z overcoatings (e.g. carbon or B4C), applied on top of the high-Z metallic layer, can enhance the reflectivity in the softer band (mainly below 2 keV), but conventional deposition methods for these materials are not easily compatible with some of the mainstream technologies for mirror fabrication (notably, the silicon pore optics that will be used for the ATHENA X-ray mission which is being implemented by ESA). In this work we discuss novel solutions (carbon-like overcoatings realized by dip coating or vapor phase deposition), which can be particularly convenient for the application to ATHENA and to future telescopes. KW - X-ray KW - optics KW - ATHENA KW - iridium KW - reflectivity KW - Röntgenteleskop Y1 - 2021 U6 - https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2599803 VL - 2021 IS - 11852 SP - 118524P-1 EP - 118524P-13 PB - SPIE ER - TY - CHAP A1 - Cotroneo, Vincenzo A1 - Bruni, Ricardo A1 - Civitani, Marta Maria A1 - Döhring, Thorsten A1 - Gibertini, Eugenio A1 - Magagnin, Luca A1 - Pareschi, Giovanni A1 - Rivolta, Giacomo A1 - Romaine, Suzanne A1 - Sethares, Leandra A1 - Sironi, Giorgia A1 - Tagliaferri, Gianpiero A1 - Valsecchi, Giuseppe T1 - Dopamine dip-liquid overcoatings for soft X-ray reflectivity enhancement T2 - Proceedings of SPIE N2 - It has been known for some time that sputtered low-density coatings deposited under vacuum (e.g. carbon or B4C), applied on top of high-density metallic coatings, can enhance the reflectivity in the soft x-ray band (below ~5 keV). In the last years, we experimented with novel carbonated coatings obtained by dip-liquid deposition, in which a thin film is formed on the surface of a mirror by immersion in a suitable precursor solution. After several attempts with different chemical compounds, we found an optimal candidate both for the reflectivity performance and for the convenience of the deposition process, which is much simpler and inexpensive compared to conventional processes. In particular, such coatings can enhance the soft x-ray response at the reflection angles employed in future telescopes, like ATHENA (ESA), Lynx (NASA) and eXTP (CAS). In this paper we consider the application of dip-liquid overcoatings on conventional coatings (Au, Ir) or in combination with recently proposed chromium overcoatings and their possible uses to enhance the reflectivity of x-ray mirrors at low, medium or higher energies, presenting the first experimental results of x-ray tests on these coatings. KW - astronomical telescopes KW - soft x-ray KW - reflectivity enhancement KW - dopamine overcoatings KW - Röntgenspiegel KW - Röntgenteleskop Y1 - 2022 UR - https://www.spiedigitallibrary.org/conference-proceedings-of-spie/12181/2630212/Dopamine-dip-liquid-overcoatings-for-soft-x-ray-reflectivity-enhancement/10.1117/12.2630212.short U6 - https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2630212 VL - 2022 IS - 12181 SP - 1218117 EP - 1218117 ER - TY - CHAP A1 - Rivolta, Giacomo A1 - Bruni, Ricardo A1 - Civitani, Marta Maria A1 - Cotroneo, Vincenzo A1 - Döhring, Thorsten A1 - Gibertini, Eugenio A1 - Magagnin, Luca A1 - Pareschi, Giovanni A1 - Romaine, Suzanne A1 - Sethares, Leandra A1 - Sironi, Giorgia A1 - Tagliaferri, Gianpiero A1 - Valsecchi, Giuseppe T1 - Development in carbon-based coatings for X-ray astronomy T2 - IWXM 2022, 7th International Workshop on Metrology for X-ray Optics, Mirror Design and Fabrication, Berlin, 5th - 8th April 2022 KW - x-ray astronomy KW - carbon-based coatings KW - x-ray telescopes KW - Röntgenastronomie KW - Röntgenteleskop Y1 - 2022 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Cotroneo, Vicenzo A1 - Basso, Stefano A1 - Civitani, Marta A1 - Döhring, Thorsten A1 - Gibertini, Eugenio A1 - Iovenitti, Simone A1 - Magagnin, Luca A1 - Pareschi, Giovanni A1 - Sironi, Giorgia A1 - Spiga, Daniele A1 - Tagliaferri, Gianpiero A1 - Valsecchi, Giuseppe T1 - Polydopamine Coatings for Enhanced Soft X-Ray Reflectivity in Space Telescope Mirrors JF - ECS Meeting Abstracts N2 - It has been known for years that sputtered low-density coatings deposited under vacuum (e.g. carbon or B4C), applied on top of high-density metallic coatings, can enhance their reflectivity in the soft X-ray band (below ~5 keV). However, the physical deposition techniques, as vacuum-based sputtering, to produce B4C or amorphous coatings are usually difficult and highly costing. Polydopamine (PDA), a bio-polymer inspired by mussels, exhibits exceptional surface binding and it’s nowadays a popular material used in surface engineering for multipurpose applications (Ryu, 2018). PDA thin film are typically produced in aqueous solution by the oxidative polymerization of dopamine, commonly known as one of the “hormones of happiness”, resulting in nanometric PDA coating with tunable thickness and morphology. In recent years, we have introduced and investigated a novel and scalable strategy for enhancing the soft X-ray reflectivity of telescope mirrors used in space missions based on dip-liquid deposition of PDA thin films as carbon-rich coating (carbon 62.7 %wt. in DA monomer) (Cotroneo, 2022). This method is very versatile and quick and offers a low-cost alternative to conventional carbon-like coating, while maintaining or even exceeding performance in the energy range below ~5 keV. Experimental tests across three X-ray beamlines—including two synchrotron facilities—demonstrated consistent reflectivity enhancement, especially in the 1–4 keV energy range and with a good match between theoretical predictions and experimental reflectivity profiles. When applied over traditional coatings (e.g Au, Ir), the dip-liquid overcoats produced improvements of up to 100% in effective area for some specific X-ray bands compared to conventional single-metal films. These results are particularly compelling for nickel-replicated mirrors with gold coatings, a common architecture in cost-sensitive space missions. Bibliography Cotroneo, V., 2022. Dopamine dip-liquid overcoatings for soft x-ray reflectivity enhancement. SPIE Proceedings. Ryu, J. H., 2018. Polydopamine Surface Chemistry: A Decade of Discovery. ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces. KW - Röntgenteleskop KW - Röntgenspiegel Y1 - 2025 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1149/MA2025-02673247mtgabs SN - 2151-2043 VL - MA2025-02 IS - 67 SP - 3247 EP - 3247 PB - The Electrochemical Society ER -