Generation of picosecond CuK/spl alpha/ X-ray pulses and application to time-resolved X-ray diffraction

Summary form only given. Generation of picosecond X-ray pulses has applications to time-resolved diffraction studies. For the generation of picosecond narrow linewidth hard X-ray pulses one can use the optical excitation of an X-ray diode. This technique allows for the generation of picosecond X-ray pulses with spatial and spectral characteristics similar to the X-ray radiation generated by conventional X-ray tubes. Here, we report the results on the generation of CuKa X-ray pulse shorter than 10 ps by driving an X-ray diode with 1.5 ps, 193 nm laser pulses at repetition rate of 300 Hz.