capillary optics

X-ray capillary optics are based on the principle of radiation transmission through glass tubes (capillaries) by means of total external reflection. The direction of the beam propagation can be changed by bent tubes. This gives the principal possibility to concentrate divergent radiation onto small spots or transform divergent beams into quasi parallel ones.

The special properties of x-ray capillary optics allow the development and construction of a new generation of miniaturized x-ray systems which are much more compact and less power consuming than the traditional ones.