Micro-diffraction is used for the study of very small amounts of powder samples, or of small single-crystals. The X-ray beam has to be concentrated on a very small area (typically smaller than 50 microns) with a high intensity in order to produce a sufficiently clean signal so that the data may be collected in a reasonable time.

Several X-ray monochromators may be used to produce a spot of 50 microns or smaller. 2D multilayer optics are the most efficient solution for high flux monochromatic applications requiring a moderate or low divergence.

The FOX2D multilayer optics from Xenocs have proved extremely well adapted for micro-diffraction analysis either when coupled with sealed tube micro-focus sources or larger sources such as synchrotron sources where the FOX2D may be used as a beam concentrator.