The first two-dimensional neutral helium images were obtained using a conventional Fresnel zone plate by Koch et al. in a transmission setup. Helium will not pass through a solid material, therefore a large change in the measured signal is obtained when a sample is placed between the source and the detector. By maximising the contrast and using transmission mode, it was much easier to verify the feasibility of the technique. However, the setup used by Koch et al. with a zone plate did not produce a high enough signal to observe the reflected signal from the surface at the time. Nevertheless, the focussing obtained with a zone plate offers the potential for improved resolution due to the small beam spot size in the future. Research into neutral helium microscopes that use a Fresnel zone plate is an active area in Holst’s group at the University of Bergen.