Andrey Sokolov, Qiushi Huang, Friedmar Senf, Jiangtao Feng, Stephanie Lemke, Svyatoslav Alimov, Jeniffa Knedel, Thomas Zeschke, Oliver Kutz, Tino Seliger, Grzegorz Gwalt, Franz Schäfers, Frank Siewert, Igor Kozhevnikov, Runze Qi, Zhong Zhang, Wenbin Li, Zhanshan Wang

• The optimized design of multilayer-coated blazed gratings (MLBG) for high-flux tender X-ray monochromators was systematically studied by numerical simulations. The resulting correlation between the multilayer d-spacing and grating blaze angle significantly deviated from the one predicted by conventional equations. Three high line density gratings with different blaze angles were fabricated and coated by the same Cr/C multilayer. The MLBG with an optimal blaze angle of 1.0 degrees showed a record efficiency reaching 60% at 3.1 keV and 4.1 keV. The measured efficiencies of all three gratings were consistent with calculated results proving the validity of the numerical simulation and indicating a more rigorous way to design the optimal MLBG structure. Published by The Optical Society under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.