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APRIL 2025 I SMT007 MAGAZINE 39 Advances in X-ray Technology Refinement of spatial resolution Advances in X-ray tube and X-ray detector hardware have increased resolution in both 2D and 3D inspection of materials. From the perspective of the X-ray tube, there was the need for smaller focal spots as well as improved stability during potentially long scan times, where required. On the other side, the detectors have improved their sen- sitivity while decreasing pixel pitch without unacceptable losses of sensitive area. ese are only two pieces of the puzzle, and alone, they make great strides for 2D X-ray inspection. However, for the active movement of multiple axes that is required for 3D inspection, there are more preci- sion requirements. at is, ever y axis needs to move perfectly together. With a simple computer tomography (CT) system, that may start with only one axis and precision control for that is rudimentar y at this point. With more advanced CT systems with a flexible rotation axis and with laminogra- phy trajectories being put to use, the num- ber of actively moving axes is no longer triv- ial. Keeping these all moving simultane- ously with perfect synchronicity requires precision movement systems. Completing this incredibly precise task repeatedly with the same results, provides the certainty that the results are reliable. Laminography allows for high-resolution 3D inspection Traditional CT inspection requires gather- ing 2D X-ray images all around an object. Var- ious trajectories have found shortcuts around this, with varying levels of detail loss and the introduction of artefacts. In electronics man- Figure 3: Repeatable results throughout the day are required. Figure 4: Laminography trajectories allow for batch scans.