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Abstract

BM18 is the ESRF beamline dedicated to high-sensitivity, propagation-based phase-contrast tomography of large and complex objects. This 220m long beamline combines one of the smallest source size of the ESRF-EBS with a large high-energy polychromatic beam and long sample-to-detector distances. The usable energy range covers from 38 to 300 keV, with a beam size of up to 300 × 17 mm². Propagation distances of up to 36 m provide strong phase-contrast sensitivity even at low resolution and high-energy. Voxel sizes range from 1 to 70 µm.

A key feature of BM18 is its hierarchical imaging approach, enabling complete objects to be scanned at moderate resolution before selected regions of interest are investigated at higher resolution. This allows structures spanning several length scales to be characterised within a single non-destructive workflow. The beamline is equipped with two tomographs. The big sample stage can accommodate objects of up to 300 kg, with dimensions reaching 180 cm in diameter and 230 cm vertically.

These capabilities make BM18 particularly suited to cultural and natural heritage, biomedical imaging, materials science, geology, and industrial applications, where large samples and complex internal structures require a combination of high penetration, phase sensitivity and spatial resolution. The beamline’s high degree of automation also supports efficient acquisition of large datasets and systematic multiscale studies.

The webinar will present the main characteristics and imaging configurations of BM18, together with representative applications illustrating the potential of multi-scale phase-contrast tomography across different scientific fields.