Observational strategies for three-dimensional synchrotron microtomography

Abstract

We describe essential features of a data set of projection measurements suitable for tomographic imaging with given accuracy and resolution, and apply the results to analyze the use of synchrotron radiation to perform three-dimensional microtomography. Previously, Grodzins [Nucl. Instrum. Methods 206, 541 (1983)] showed that the number of photons needed to generate an image could be minimized by adjusting the observational energy such that the target’s optical depth FD=2. We correct and extend his results to consider also the spectral distribution of the source. Observational time is minimized at a (typically) lower observational energy where the source flux is larger, even though FD≥2. The results demonstrate that, in principle, synchrotron sources provide sufficient brightness to image small samples with ≂1-μm resolution.