Laue lens

A Laue lens is a set of properly oriented crystals that focus X-ray photons via Bragg diffraction in the Laue geometry.

X-ray diffraction can occur in perfect crystals because their lattice structure is periodic and its period is comparable with the wavelength of the X-rays: crystals are a natural diffraction grating for X-rays. Diffraction deviates photons from their incidence direction by an angle (twice the Bragg angle) that depends on the wavelength and on the lattice interplanar distance.

This image shows the concept of the lens and the three possible events (1 absorption, 2 transmission, 3 diffraction) that can occur to photons coming from an X-ray source. (

Click to enlarge)