Isotope-selective radiography and material assay using high-brilliance, quasi-monochromatic, high-energy photons.

We demonstrate the possibility to directly detect microgram amounts of the isotope 7Li using a quasi-monochromatic high-energy photon beam. The isotope selective detection is based on a witness scatterer absorbing and re-emitting photons via nuclear resonance fluorescence. This enables the detection of isotopes with microgram accuracy at long distances from the actual sample. Further, we demonstrate that the technique can deliver quantitative information without specific knowledge of the photon flux and no spectral capabilities or knowledge of the resonance fluorescence cross section. Detection of low-atomic-weight isotopes screened by heavy shielding is also shown. The techniques described are applicable to all next-generation, ultrahigh brilliance, laser-Compton light sources currently under construction.

ID15A at the ESRF - a beamline for high speed operando X-ray diffraction, diffraction tomography and total scattering.

ID15A is a newly refurbished beamline at the ESRF devoted to operando and time-resolved diffraction and imaging, total scattering and diffraction computed tomography. The beamline is optimized for rapid alternation between the different techniques during a single operando experiment in order to collect complementary data on working systems. The high available energy (up to 120 keV) means that even bulky and highly absorbing systems may be studied. The beamline is equipped with optimized focusing optics and a photon-counting CdTe pixel detector, allowing for both unprecedented data quality at high energy and for very rapid triggered experiments. A large choice of imaging detectors and ancillary probes and sample environments is also available.

Intramolecular structure and energetics in supercooled water down to 255 K.

We studied the structure and energetics of supercooled water by means of X-ray Raman and Compton scattering. Under supercooled conditions down to 255 K, the oxygen K-edge measured by X-ray Raman scattering suggests an increase of tetrahedral order similar to the conventional temperature effect observed in non-supercooled water. Compton profile differences indicate contributions beyond the theoretically predicted temperature effect and provide a deeper insight into local structural changes. These contributions suggest a decrease of the electron mean kinetic energy by 3.3 ± 0.7 kJ (mol K)(-1) that cannot be modeled within established water models. Our surprising results emphasize the need for water models that capture in detail the intramolecular structural changes and quantum effects to explain this complex liquid.

In situ synchrotron high-energy X-ray diffraction analysis on phase transformations in Ti-Al alloys processed by equal-channel angular pressing.

Mixtures of 47-Al and 53-Ti powders (atomic %) have been consolidated using back pressure equal-channel angular pressing starting with both raw and ball-milled powders. In situ synchrotron high-energy X-ray diffraction studies are presented with continuous Rietveld analysis obtained upon a heating ramp from 300 K to 1075 K performed after the consolidation process. Initial phase distributions contain all intermetallic compounds of this system except Al, with distribution maxima in the outer regions of the concentrations (alpha-Ti, TiAl(3)). Upon annealing, the phase evolution and lattice parameter changes owing to chemical segregation, which is in favour for the more equilibrated phases such as gamma-TiAl, alpha(2)-Ti(3)Al and TiAl(2), were followed unprecedentedly in detail. An initial delta-TiH(2) content with a phase transition at about 625 K upon heating created an intermediate beta-Ti phase which played an important role in the reaction chain and gradually transformed into the final products.

Photolysis of Br2 in CCl4 studied by time-resolved X-ray scattering.

A time-resolved X-ray solution scattering study of bromine molecules in CCl(4) is presented as an example of how to track atomic motions in a simple chemical reaction. The structures of the photoproducts are tracked during the recombination process, geminate and non-geminate, from 100 ps to 10 micros after dissociation. The relaxation of hot Br(2)(*) molecules heats the solvent. At early times, from 0.1 to 10 ns, an adiabatic temperature rise is observed, which leads to a pressure gradient that forces the sample to expand. The expansion starts after about 10 ns with the laser beam sizes used here. When thermal artefacts are removed by suitable scaling of the transient solvent response, the excited-state solute structures can be obtained with high fidelity. The analysis shows that 30% of Br(2)(*) molecules recombine directly along the X potential, 60% are trapped in the A/A' state with a lifetime of 5.5 ns, and 10% recombine non-geminately via diffusive motion in about 25 ns. The Br-Br distance distribution in the A/A' state peaks at 3.0 A.