SUNBIM a package for X-ray imaging of materials with SWAXS & GISWAXS techniques

SUNBIM (Supramolecular & SUbmolecular Nano & Bio Materials X-ray IMaging Project) is a suite of integrated programs developed, in collaboration with Rigaku Innovative Technologies, to treat Small and Wide Angle X-ray Scattering data, collected either in transmission geometry (SAXS/WAXS) or in reflection geometry (GISAXS/GIWAXS). In addition, a specific routine to collect and analyze data in SAXS scanning transmission microscopy has been developed as additional tool to investigate tissues or material science samples through a focused X-ray beam which is used to raster scan a specimen while acquiring SAXS scattering patterns with a 2D detector. Indeed, a first-generation-synchrotron-class FrE+ SuperBright Rigaku microsource, coupled to a three pinhole S-MAX3000 camera, was recently installed at the X-ray MicroImaging Laboratory (XMI-L@b) and used with success in SAXS/WAXS/GISAXS/GIWAXS experiments (De Caro et al, 2012; 2013)and for SAXS scanning microscopy (Altamura et al, 2012; Giannini et al, 2013). The SUNBIM package was developed and interfaced to the XMI-L@b to perform: i) q-scale calibration and 2D->1D folding on SAXS/GISAXS/WAXS data, including also possible eccentricity corrections studied in the case of WAXS/GIWAXS data (Cervellino et al., 2006; 2008); ii) background evaluation and subtraction, denoising and primary beam angular divergence deconvolution on SAXS/GISAXS profiles (De Caro et al, 2012; 2013); iii) indexing of 2D GISAXS frames (Tate et al., 2006) and extraction of 1D GISAXS profiles along specific cuts; iv) scanning SAXS microscopy: collection of SAXS data in a mesh across mm2 area, composite of the as-collected 2D SAXS frames into a single image, analysis of the composed data to derive the transmitted intensity microscopy as well as the distribution and orientation of nano-scale structures over the analyzed area (Bunk et al., 2009).