Monochromatic x-ray backlighting of wire-array z-pinch plasmas using spherically bent quartz crystals

X-ray backlighting systems are being developed to diagnose z-pinch, inertial confinement fusion capsule, and complex hydrodynamics experiments on the 20 MA Sandia Z machine. The x-ray backlighter source is a laser-produced plasma created using the Z-Beamlet laser, a 2 TW, 2 kJ Nd:glass laser recently constructed at Sandia. As an alternative to point-projection radiography, we are investigating a different geometry [S. A. Pikuz et al., Rev. Sci. Instrum. 68, 740 (1997)] that uses spherically bent crystal mirrors to simultaneously obtain high spatial resolution and a narrow spectral bandwidth. Backlighting systems using the Si He-alpha line (1.865 keV) and the Mn He-alpha line (6.15 keV) are discussed. These systems are-capable of spatial resolutions in the 5-10 mum range, a field of view as large as 5 mm by 20 mm, and a spectral bandwidth comparable to the width of the emission line used for backlighting. (C) 2003 American Institute of Physics.