Quasi-monochromatic hard X-ray source via laser Compton scattering and its application

We have developed a quasi-monochromatic hard X-ray source via laser Compton scattering (LCS) based on an S-band compact electron linac at AIST. The number of total photons and the maximum X-ray energy was 10(7) photons/sec and about 40 keV, respectively, in 15-degree crossing angle between a 42 MeV electron beam and a 800 nm Ti:Sa laser. The biological observation of the human bone with fractures has been successfully demonstrated using the LCS X-ray of 26.4 key with the in-line phase contrast scheme. Good contrast enhancement is clearly observed between the absorption and the phase contrast images. (C) 2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.