NEW LITHOGRAPHIC TECHNIQUES FOR X-RAY SPECTROSCOPY

THE GOAL OF MY PROPOSED RESEARCH IS TO DEVELOP A PROCEDURE FOR FABRICATING HIGH-RESOLUTION X-RAY DIFFRACTION GRATINGS USING NEW TECHNIQUES IN ELECTRON-BEAM LITHOGRAPHY. GRATINGS ARE THE INSTRUMENT OF CHOICE TO OBTAIN HIGH-RESOLUTION SPECTRA AT SOFT X-RAY ENERGIES WHERE A LARGE POPULATION OF SPECTRAL LINES EXIST IN ASTROPHYSICAL PLASMAS. IMPROVING SPECTRAL RESOLUTION AND THROUGHPUT OF SPECTROMETERS FOR NEXT GENERATION X-RAY OBSERVATORIES IS A DIRECT TECHNOLOGICAL NEED OF NASA AS OUTLINED IN THE SPACE TECHNOLOGY ROADMAP WITH TECHNOLOGY BREAKDOWN STRUCTURE 8.1.3. THIS FABRICATION METHOD WILL PRODUCE REFLECTION GRATINGS THAT PUSH THE STATE OF THE ART FOR ADVANCED SPECTROMETERS BY REALIZING AN IDEALIZED GROOVE PROFILE.