We have used the Scanning Transmission X-ray Microscope at beamline X1A (X1-STXM) at Brookhaven National Laboratory (BNL) to acquire high resolution, chemical and orientation sensitive images of polymeric samples as well as point spectra from 0.1 μm areas. This sensitivity is achieved by exploiting the X-ray Absorption Near Edge Structure (XANES) of the carbon K edge. One of the most illustrative example of the chemical sensitivity achievable is provided by images of a polycarbonate/pol(ethylene terephthalate) (70/30 PC/PET) blend. Contrast reversal at high overall contrast is observed between images acquired at 285.36 and 285.69 eV (Fig. 1). Contrast in these images is achieved by exploring subtle differences between resonances associated with the π bonds (sp hybridization) of the aromatic groups of each polymer. PET has a split peak associated with these aromatic groups, due to the proximity of its carbonyl groups to its aromatic rings, whereas PC has only a single peak.
