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This manuscript presents the structural characterization of Al/Sc-based periodic multilayer coatings for the extreme ultraviolet (EUV) spectral range. Based on transmission electron microscopy and electron diffraction as well as grazing-incidence and large-angle x-ray diffraction, a model for the layer structure and the interfacial effects of Al/Sc coatings is built. The onset of crystallization in nanoscale Al and Sc layers as a function of thickness is also revealed in these characterizations. The Al/Sc layer model is validated and further refined by fitting in-band and out-of-band EUV reflectance measurements across 5 orders of magnitude in an extended wavelength range from 17 to 80 nm. The same type of EUV reflectance measurements is used to test the Al/Sc aging properties and to demonstrate the spectral response of optimized two- and tri-material multilayers including Al/Sc, Al/Sc/SiC and Mo/Al/Sc.

Membrane shape is a key feature of many cellular processes, including cell differentiation, division, migration, and trafficking. The development of nanostructured surfaces allowing for the in situ manipulation of membranes in living cells is crucial to understand these processes, but this requires complicated and limited-access technologies. Here, we investigate the self-organization of cellular membranes by using a customizable and benchtop method allowing one to engineer 1D SiO2 nanopillar arrays of defined sizes and shapes on high-performance glass compatible with advanced microscopies. As a result of this original combination, we provide a mapping of the morphology-induced modulation of the cell membrane mechanics, dynamics and steady-state organization of key protein complexes implicated in cellular trafficking and signal transduction.

We present an experimental study of the effect of layer interfaces on the x-ray reflectance in Cr/B4C multilayer interference coatings with layer thicknesses ranging from 0.7 nm to 5.4 nm. The multilayers were deposited by magnetron sputtering and by ion beam sputtering. Grazing incidence x-ray reflectometry, soft x-ray reflectometry, and transmission electron microscopy reveal asymmetric multilayer structures with a larger B4C-on-Cr interface, which we modeled with a 1-1.5 nm thick interfacial layer. Reflectance measurements in the vicinity of the Cr L2,3 absorption edge demonstrate fine structure that is not predicted by simulations using the currently tabulated refractive index (optical constants) values for Cr.

We present an experimental study of the effect of layer interfaces on the x-ray reflectance in Cr/B4C multilayer interference coatings with layer thicknesses ranging from 0.7 nm to 5.4 nm. The multilayers were deposited by magnetron sputtering and by ion beam sputtering. Grazing incidence x-ray reflectometry, soft x-ray reflectometry, and transmission electron microscopy reveal asymmetric multilayer structures with a larger B4C-on-Cr interface, which we modeled with a 1-1.5 nm thick interfacial layer. Reflectance measurements in the vicinity of the Cr L2,3 absorption edge demonstrate fine structure that is not predicted by simulations using the currently tabulated refractive index (optical constants) values for Cr.

The temporal coherence of an injection-seeded transient 18.9 nm molybdenum soft x-ray laser was measured using a wavefront division interferometer and compared to model simulations. The seeded laser is found to have a coherence time similar to that of the unseeded amplifier, ~1 ps, but a significantly larger degree of temporal coherence. The measured coherence time for the unseeded amplifier is only a small fraction of the pulsewidth, while in the case of the seeded laser it approaches full temporal coherence. The measurements confirm that the bandwidth of the solid target amplifiers is significantly wider than that of soft x-ray lasers that use gaseous targets, an advantage for the development of sub-picosecond soft x-ray lasers., QC 20120307

The linewidth of an injection-seeded 18.9nm molybdenum soft x-ray laser (SXRL) was measured to be significantly wider than seeded optical field ionization SXRLs that use gaseous targets, an advantage for the development of sub-picosecond SXRLs., Conference on Lasers and Electro-Optics (CLEO), Baltimore, MD, MAY 01-06, 2011. QC 20120214

Locally reducing the width of a wide photonic crystal (PhC) waveguide generates a constriction which acts as an internal reflector. We have simulated and measured the spectral behavior of a wide PhC waveguide locally constricted to a narrower PhC waveguide and ended by two cleaved facets, thus generating two coupled cavities. Passive structures as well as electrically injected active structures have been investigated. The multimode behavior of wide PhC waveguides is evidenced to play a deciding role. Modal reflection and transmission at the constriction are simulated and measured on passive PhC waveguides, when varying the constrictions' hole size and length. The spectral behavior of full-PhC electrically pumped lasers including such a constriction is measured and analyzed according to the constriction geometry. Design rules are finally proposed to take advantage of this coupled-cavities behavior for high rejection and high external efficiency monomode laser operation., QC 20100525

A two-dimensional phenomenological approach previously developed for the modeling of out-of-plane losses in low refractive index contrast planar photonic crystals (PPhCs) is used to study the dependence of the different loss terms on the planar waveguide parameters. It is demonstrated that: (i) Losses can be minimized by designing vertical heterostructures optimized for a given technological process and/or for a given hole shape; and (ii) any small reduction of the loss value has a strong impact on the optical performances of PPhC structures., QC 20100707 QC 20110915