Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jul 6, 2026

Measurement of X-ray Beam Coherence along Multiple Directions Using 2-D Checkerboard Phase Grating
Published on: October 11, 2016
Angular distribution of light scattered from a sinusoidal grating
E Marx1, T A Germer, T V Vorburger
1National Institute of Standards and Technology, Gaithersburg, Maryland 20899, USA. egon.marx@nist.gov
Abstract:
The angular distributions of light scattered by gold-coated and aluminum-coated gratings with amplitudes of approximately 90 nm and periods of 6.67 microm were measured and calculated for light incident from a He-Ne laser at an angle of 6 degrees. Experimental results are compared with predictions of Beckmann's scalar theory and Rayleigh's vector theory. The measured scattering pattern has a background of scattered light due mainly to residual surface roughness. Also the power in the higher-order peaks is larger by several orders of magnitude than the computed one, which can be attributed mainly to the low-order contributions of the harmonics in the profile.
Related Concept Videos
Interference and Diffraction
X-ray Crystallography
Diffraction
Diffraction is the change in the direction of travel experienced by an electromagnetic wave when it encounters a physical barrier whose dimensions are comparable to those of the wavelength of the light. X-rays are electromagnetic radiation with wavelengths about as long as the distance between neighboring...
Graphical and Analytic Representation of Sinusoids
The first step is measuring the peak-to-peak value, which is twice the amplitude of the sinusoid. This provides information about the maximum voltage swing of the waveform.
Secondly, the period and angular frequency are determined. The period is the time taken for one complete cycle of the waveform, while...
Polar Coordinates: Problem Solving

