26–31 Jul 2026
Luskin Conference Center, UCLA
US/Pacific timezone

Spectral deconvolution of compound x-ray distributions for use in a high-repetition facility.

28 Jul 2026, 17:40
20m
Ballroom C&D (Luskin)

Ballroom C&D

Luskin

To be considered for Working Group talk A5-Working group # 5

Speaker

Chris Armstrong (Central Laser Facility)

Description

High-intensity laser–plasma interactions generate bright, energetic x-ray radiation via numerous mechanisms during the ultra-short lifetime of the interaction. X-ray radiation from these sources is both informative of the underlying processes and valued for secondary applications. Yet, absolute characterisation of this radiation remains a significant challenge owing to its variable brightness, ultrashort duration, broad spectral content, and the harsh background environment.
Typically, measurement techniques for high energy x-rays rely on absorption filters and an a-priori assumption of the spectral shape. This technique can be powerful but has distinct limits – a) the search space increases by the power of the number of free parameters in the assumed distribution, b) there is always a minimum for fitting routines irrespective of the accuracy of the initial distribution.
Exhaustive scanning and optimisation of the parameter space to return a “best-fit” with the measured data can be prohibitive for upcoming high-repetition, high-power facilities. Herein, we present two distinct methods to address this challenge; an analytical approach to reduce the number of parameters, and a neural-network machine-learning method that minimises a-priori assumptions. Throughout we discuss the applicability of these techniques to work in high-repetition facilities.

Working group WG5

Author

Chris Armstrong (Central Laser Facility)

Co-authors

Dr Alex Pirozhkov (c Kansai Institute for Photon Science) Mr Anandaeaswaran Brainthra (Central Laser Facility) Dr Barbara Villarini (University of Westminster) Dr Cristina Hernandez-Gomez (Central Laser Facility) Dr Graeme Scott (Central Laser Facility) Dr Jeyan Thiyagalingam (STFC SCD) Prof. Paul McKenna (University of Strathclyde) Prof. Rajeev Pattathil (Central Laser Facility) Dr Ross Gray (University of Strathclyde) Dr Sion Richards (STFC Technology Department)

Presentation materials

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