Inverse Compton scattering of infrared photons from relativistic electrons generates brilliant quasi-monochromatic X-rays with an electron accelerator with dimensions of only a few meters, e.g. at the storage ring based inverse Compton scattering X-ray source employed at the Munich Compact Light Source. Availability of synchrotron light in a laboratory comes along with broader access to synchrotron techniques, especially in - but not limited to - clinical imaging and pre-clinical biomedical applications. We have been exploring the latter in daily user operation since commissioning of the MuCLS. So far, the focus has been on dynamic in vivo small-animal respiratory imaging, grating-based phase-contrast imaging, e.g. for quantitative material decomposition, and spectroscopic imaging, e.g. for angiography.
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