MOXI: a novel microfabricated zoom lens for x-ray imaging

Conventional x-ray optics have low optical efficiency and wavelength dependent focusing. The use of grazing incidence reflective optics overcomes these problems and significant progress has been made using polycapillary systems based on commercial microchannel plates originally designed as electron multipliers. Microfabrication techniques, under development for microelectromechanical systems (MEMS), provide a means of making arrays of microchannels with radial symmetry for a wide range of x-ray optical applications. The focal length of such micro-optical arrays may be varied to provide a zoom lens capability.