Breaking Through Spatial and Technical Limitations! Zhuoling Precision Supports the Beamline Upgrade of Hefei Light Source

——Successful Delivery of the New Beamline Project at Hefei Light Source

Recently, the beamline upgrade project undertaken by our company at the University of Science and Technology of China (Hefei Light Source) successfully passed process testing and acceptance. All parameters meet the design indicators, achieving high‑efficiency transmission, high‑resolution monochromatization, and high‑quality focusing of X‑rays around 92 eV photon energy generated by the undulator. The performance of the beamline has reached the advanced level of similar international beamlines.

The project involved a technical upgrade based on the original beamline station and faced two major technical challenges:

First, the experimental station has extremely limited space, requiring high‑performance indicators to be achieved in a narrow area, which places extremely high demands on X‑ray optical design and mechanical structure.

Second, the project schedule was very tight, requiring the entire process from design, manufacturing, assembly to commissioning to be completed within five months, while ensuring that experiments of adjacent beamline users were not affected.

To address the dual challenges of space constraints and tight schedule, the project team conducted in‑depth demonstrations and developed a systematic and innovative solution, completing the design of the entire X‑ray optical path within limited space:

1. In terms of optical design, multiple toroidal optical elements were adopted to integrate horizontal and vertical optical adjustments into a single mirror, greatly improving space utilization.

2. The system design was optimized to streamline the monitoring and diagnostic equipment in the optical path, retaining only core components at key nodes.

The multi‑degree‑of‑freedom coupling on multiple toroidal optical elements, as well as the streamlined monitoring and diagnostic equipment, posed significant challenges to beam optimization after installation. Through strengthened equipment pre‑installation and optical beam adjustment, the Zhuoling Precision team significantly improved engineering efficiency and controllability, ultimately successfully completing the task and achieving a comprehensive improvement in beamline performance, reaching the international advanced level. Key system parameters are shown below:

New Main Beamline

● Energy range: covering 92 eV

● Energy bandwidth: better than 4%

● Focus size: FWHM better than 200×60 μm²

● Photon flux: ≥3×10¹³ phs/s@4%BW@360 mA

● Vacuum level: static vacuum 6×10^-8 Pa

New Branch Beamline

● Wavelength range: 10-16 nm

● Energy resolution: 1600@92 eV

● Focus size: FWHM better than 30×20 μm²

● Photon flux: ≥1×10¹² phs/s@0.1%BW@360 mA@92 eV

● Divergence angle: ≤1×1 mrad²

● Vacuum level: static vacuum 6×10^-8 Pa

In recent years, Zhuoling Precision has established a professional and stable team and a sound supply chain system. Our strong comprehensive strength has enabled us to calmly face various challenges in this project. With their professionalism and perseverance, team members have maintained efficient collaboration, overcome various complex situations during construction, and ultimately successfully completed the project. It is particularly gratifying to see that young employees have grown rapidly and demonstrated excellent professional qualities, injecting fresh vitality into the team.

Finally, we sincerely thank the University of Science and Technology of China for their trust and support. In the future, Zhuoling Precision will continue to uphold the spirit of professionalism, contribute to scientific research, and achieve even greater results in 2025.