Characterisation of a 10/sup 13/ A/s micro capillary discharge as an ion and soft X-rays source

Summary form only given, as follows. Capillary discharges are known to be high intensity sources for incoherent and coherent radiation of soft X-rays and VUV. These devices are very compact and therefore suited for laboratory applications. We present a Micro Capillary with effective source dimension of 100 microns in diameter and in length. Due to an optimised energy transfer of 0.2 Joule from the capacitors to the capillary a peak current rise time of 10/sup 13/ A/s is achieved and a dense plasma is observed. Experimental investigations on its plasma parameter and the influence by different capillary material are presented. Results show that a kT=150 eV and Ne=3/spl middot/10/sup 20/ cm/sup -3/ plasma is formed, which emits 8 keV fast ions due to free expansion.