High-Resolution X-Ray Lensless Imaging by Differential Holographic Encoding

We demonstrate in the soft x-ray regime a novel technique for high-resolution lensless imaging based on differential holographic encoding. We have achieved superior resolution over x-ray Fourier transform holography while maintaining the signal-to-noise ratio and algorithmic simplicity. We obtain a resolution of 16 nm by synthesizing images in the Fourier domain from a single diffraction pattern, which allows resolution improvement beyond the reference fabrication limit. Direct comparisons with iterative phase retrieval and images from state-of-the-art zone-plate microscopes are presented.