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 -