Diffraction grating for X-ray phase contrast and/or dark-field imaging

An X-ray phase contrast and/or dark-field imaging system, comprising:

• an X-ray source;
• an X-ray detector;
• and
• a diffraction grating comprising:
• a substrate;
• and
• a plurality of material layers formed on a surface of the substrate and laterally spaced from each other across the surface of the substrate, wherein a material layer of the plurality of material layers comprises a plurality of materials formed one on top of another in a direction perpendicular to the surface of the substrate, wherein the plurality of materials comprises at least one material that has a k-edge absorption energy that is higher than the k-edge absorption energy of Gold and comprises Gold, and wherein a thickness of Gold in the material layer of the plurality of material layers is less than approximately 30% of a total thickness of the material layer.

A method of manufacturing a grating for X-ray phase contrast and/or dark-field imaging, the method comprising:

• forming a photo-resist layer on a surface of a substrate;
• illuminating the photo-resist layer with radiation using a mask representing a desired grating structure;
• etching the photo-resist layer to remove parts of the photo-resist layer to leave a plurality of trenches that are laterally spaced from each other across the surface of the substrate;
• forming a plurality of material layers on the surface of the substrate, wherein each layer is formed in a trench, wherein a material layer comprises a plurality of materials, wherein the plurality of materials are formed one on top of another in a direction perpendicular to the surface of the substrate, and wherein the plurality of materials comprises at least one material that has a k-edge absorption energy that is higher than the k-edge absorption energy of Gold and comprises Gold;
• and
• wherein a thickness of Gold in the material layer of the plurality of material layers is less than approximately 30% of a total thickness of the material layer.