High-energy X-rays

They are produced at modern synchrotron radiation sources such as the Cornell High Energy Synchrotron Source, SPring-8, and the beamlines ID15 and BM18 at the European Synchrotron Radiation Facility (ESRF).

The main benefit is the deep penetration into matter which makes them a probe for thick samples in physics and materials science and permits an in-air sample environment and operation.

Scattering angles are small and diffraction directed forward allows for simple detector setups.

High energy (megavolt) X-rays are also used in cancer therapy, using beams generated by linear accelerators to suppress tumors.

[1] High-energy X-rays (HEX-rays) between 100 and 300 keV bear unique advantage over conventional hard X-rays, which lie in the range of 5–20 keV [2] They can be listed as follows: With these advantages, HEX-rays can be applied for a wide range of investigations.

Two-dimensional powder diffraction setup for high-energy X-rays . HEX-rays entering from the left are diffracted in forward direction at the sample and registered by a 2D detector such as an image plate. [ 2 ]