The imaging of living specimens in water by x-ray microscopy can be greatly enhanced with the use of an intense flash x-ray source and sophisticated technologies for reading x-ray images. A subnanosecond [corrected] x-ray pulse from a laser-produced plasma was used to record the x-ray image of living sea urchin sperm in an x-ray resist. The resist relief was visualized at high resolution by atomic-force microscopy. Internal structure of the sperm head was evident, and the carbon density in a flagellum was estimated from the relief height.

No abstract

An analytical formula for maximizing radiation efficiency from a laser-produced plasma is derived. The maximum efficiency is achieved when the plasma expansion distance during laser heating is equal to the laser absorption length. The dependence of the radiation efficiency on the plasma density is confirmed by experiments using a particle-cluster target. By creating a relatively uniform density plasma with a 300 microm diameter by dispersing SnO(2) particles coated on a Si wafer, the conversion efficiency at 14 nm, as high as 4 times as that for a Sn plate target, is achieved.

Extreme-ultraviolet laser amplification has been observed for the Cvi Balmer-a transition at 18.2 nm, with use of a novel optical system to irradiate up to 1 cm length of carbon-fiber target. The measurements were time resolved and indicated peak single-transit amplification of about 30 times.