Creating Functional Digital Shadows of X-ray systems

With the use of X-ray simulations becoming popular to inform and plan for experiments, the need for accurate scanning environments is increasing. Access to beamtime is limited, but a large amount of time during scanning is wasted tweaking parameters for optimal results. A functional Digital Shadow of an X-ray scanner allows for virtual simulation of the scanner, with representative results from a real machine, allowing for accurate scan planning, saving beamtime. The Digital Shadowing process requires quantifying detector and source characteristics, such as flux, energy purity, detector line spread functions, and optical configuration. This process has been performed on three different scanning environments; Diamond Light Source’s I-12 beamline, a Nikon XTEK XTH-225, and the Dual Tube High Energy (DTHE) by RX Solutions at INSA Lyon. The results are three Digital Shadows, with the ability to perform simulations on virtual models with comparable behaviour and defects to the real world. These models give the ability to answer questions regarding the X-ray scanners, such as the feasibility of scanning a sample, or specific feature. The Digital Shadows also enable concurrent virtual users, allowing for interactive user training without the need of an actual device, or answering questions regarding health and degradation.