Title: Phase imaging of nanostructures

Authors: Brendan Allman, Kazuo Ishizuka, Keith Nugent

Addresses: Iatia Imaging, Iatia Ltd, Box Hill Nth, 3129, Australia. ' HREM Research Inc, Matsukazedai, Saitama 355-0055, Japan. ' School of Physics, University of Melbourne, 3010, Australia

Abstract: Two properties of a wave, its intensity and colour, are familiar to all of us. A third property, phase, is less familiar and carries shape information. Quantitative Phase Imaging (QPI), the method discussed in this paper, measures phase information. It utilises the fact that a phase distribution in one plane effects the intensity distribution after propagation. Many samples at the nanoscale are phase objects. For nanostructures, the phase change of the incident wave is strong, while the modulation of amplitude may be negligible. QPI generates the refractive and thickness structure of these transparent samples in a transmission imaging geometry.

Keywords: nanostructures; nanotechnology; transfer of intensity equation; HREM; phase measurement; quantitative phase imaging; QPI; aberration correction; X-ray microscopy; coherent diffractive imaging; CDI.

DOI: 10.1504/IJTTC.2008.020363

International Journal of Technology Transfer and Commercialisation, 2008 Vol.7 No.2/3, pp.241 - 257

Published online: 18 Sep 2008 *

Full-text access for editors Full-text access for subscribers Purchase this article Comment on this article