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Updated: Jul 13, 2026

A 3D Cartographic Description of the Cell by Cryo Soft X-ray Tomography
Published on: March 15, 2021
Three-dimensional micro-XRF under cryogenic conditions: a pilot experiment for spatially resolved trace analysis in
Birgit Kanngiesser1, Wolfgang Malzer, Marcel Pagels
1Institute for Optic and Atomic Physics, Technical University of Berlin, Hardenbergstr 36, 10623, Berlin, Germany. bk@atom.physik.tu-berlin.de
Abstract:
Three-dimensional micro-XRF is a recently developed microprobe which facilitates three-dimensional resolved chemical analyses with a resolution of around 20 mum. Arbitrary sites or sections of samples can be investigated without the need to section specimens physically. In this paper we demonstrate the use of the microprobe in combination with a cold nitrogen gas stream for the cryogenic fixation of specimens. A 3D micro-XRF setup at the new microfocus beamline at BESSY II was equipped with a nitrogen cryogenic stream. The distribution of Ca, Fe, Zn and Cu across virtual cross sections of a water-rich sample, the root of common duckweed, could be investigated without further sample preparation. This paper demonstrates the capabilities of 3D micro-XRF under cryogenic conditions for investigations of biological specimens.
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