NanoMAX: the hard X-ray nanoprobe beamline at the MAX IV Laboratory

NanoMAX is the first hard X-ray nanoprobe beamline at the MAX IV laboratory. It utilizes the unique properties of the world's first operational multi-bend achromat storage ring to provide an intense and coherent focused beam for experiments with several methods. In this paper we present the beamline optics design in detail, show the performance figures, and give an overview of the surrounding infrastructure and the operational diffraction endstation.

Towards automatic freeform optics design: coarse and fine search of the three-mirror solution space

Design of an optical system, whether classic or novel, in the past or the present, requires significant effort from the designer. In addition to design methods and theories, the designer’s skills and experience in optical system design are particularly important, which may require years of practice to learn. The diversity and variety of results are limited because of the difficulty, time, and labor costs required. In this article, we propose an automatic design method for freeform optics that can achieve a diverse range of three-mirror designs. The optical specifications and the design constraints are the only inputs required, and a variety of results can be obtained automatically. The output results have various structures and various optical power distributions with high imaging qualities. By implementing the design method, designers can not only realize an overview of the solution space of the three-mirror freeform system, but can also focus on specific designs.