An experimental station for advanced research on condensed matter under extreme conditions at the European Synchrotron Radiation Facility - BM29 beamline

Abstract

We describe state-of-the-art experimental techniques using the beamline BM29 of the European Synchrotron Radiation Facility (ESRF). This station exploits the unique characteristics of an ESRF bending magnet source to provide a tunable, collimated, x-ray beam to perform high quality x-ray absorption spectroscopy within the energy range of E=5–75 keV using Si(111), Si(311), and Si(511) crystal pairs. Energy scans can be performed over this wide energy range with excellent reproducibility, stability and resolution, usually better than ΔE/E≃5×10−5. The experimental setup has been exploited to study condensed matter under extreme conditions. We describe here two sample environment devices; the L’ Aquila–Camerino oven for high-temperature studies up to 3000 K in high vacuum and the Paris–Edinburgh press suitable for high-pressure high-temperature studies in the range 0.1–7 GPa and temperatures up to 1500 K. These devices can be integrated in an experimental setup which combines various control and detection systems suitable to perform x-ray absorption spectroscopy, x-ray absorption temperature scans, and energy scanning x-ray diffraction (ESXD). The ESXD setup is based on a scintillator detector behind a fixed angle collimator aligned to the sample. The combination of these three measurements, which can be performed in rapid sequence on the sample during the experiment, provides an essential tool for structural investigations and in situ sample characterization.

X-ray absorption spectroscopy study of local dynamics and thermal expansion inReO3

“…High-temperature (from 300 to 600 K) XAFS and XRD measurements were done on sample B, placed in a graphite cell mounted in a multipurpose vacuum oven [46]. The temperature was stabilized within 5 K. XRD measurements were done in energy scanning mode (ESXD) [47] …”

“…Both XAFS and XRD measurements were performed at the BM29 beam line [46,47] of the European Synchrotron Radiation Facility in Grenoble. Storage ring energy and average current were 6.0 GeV and 200 mA, respectively.…”

“…The availability of original experimental setups at the European Synchrotron Radiation Facility [46,47], designed to measure contemporarily both EXAFS and XRD, enhances the effectiveness of NTE studies [48].…”

Optimum Pump Pulse Duration for X-Ray Ar-Plasma Lasing

“…, where R i and P i are tabulated in Equation (13). Taking into account Equation (14), the pumping time to the upper (t pum2 ) and lower level (t pum1 ) and the relaxation time from the upper level (t rel2 ) and lower level (t rel1 ) can be calculated.…”

“…Besides, the advantage of the compact size and the low cost in comparison to the large-scale X-ray sources, such as free electron lasers [12] and synchrotron facilities [13], is important. Table 1 summarizes the operating conditions used experimentally in the lasing of the Ne-like Ar…”