Continuous scanning for Bragg coherent X-ray imaging

Abstract We explore the use of continuous scanning during data acquisition for Bragg coherent diffraction imaging, i.e., where the sample is in continuous motion. The fidelity of continuous scanning Bragg coherent diffraction imaging is demonstrated on a single Pt nanoparticle in a flow reactor at $$400\,^\circ \hbox {C}$$ <mml:math xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML"> <mml:mrow> <mml:mn>400</mml:mn> <mml:msup> <mml:mspace/> <mml:mo>∘</mml:mo> </mml:msup> <mml:mtext>C</mml:mtext> </mml:mrow> </mml:math> in an Ar-based gas flowed at 50 ml/min. We show a reduction of 30% in total scan time compared to conventional step-by-step scanning. The reconstructed Bragg electron density, phase, displacement and strain fields are in excellent agreement with the results obtained from conventional step-by-step scanning. Continuous scanning will allow to minimise sample instability under the beam and will become increasingly important at diffraction-limited storage ring light sources.