In situ beamline analysis and correction of active optics

At the Diamond Light Source, pencil-beam measurements have enabled long-wavelength slope errors on X-ray mirror surfaces to be examined under ultra-high vacuum and beamline mounting without the need to remove the mirror from the beamline. For an active mirror an automated procedure has been implemented to calculate the actuator settings that optimize its figure. More recently, this in situ pencil-beam method has been applied to additional uses for which ex situ measurements would be inconvenient or simply impossible. First, it has been used to check the stability of the slope errors of several bimorph mirrors at intervals of several weeks or months. Then, it also proved useful for the adjustment of bender and sag compensation actuators on mechanically bent mirrors. Fits to the bending of ideal beams have been performed on the slope errors of a mechanically bent mirror in order to distinguish curvatures introduced by the bending actuators from gravitational distortion. Application of the optimization procedure to another mechanically bent mirror led to an improvement of its sag compensation mechanism.