Comparative assessment study of aboveground soft X-ray technology

Summary form only given, as follows. The soft X-ray regime accessible at our laboratory nominally extends from photon energies of 10 eV to 10 keV. The technology relies on capacitor-based, short-pulse energy storage devices to generate a high-energy-density plasma 1 cc in volume and lasting about 10 ns. The hot plasma is created either by conversion of short-pulse electrical energy into light ions that heat the plasma or into a magnetically-driven imploding plasma. Applications of these intense soft X-rays include evaluation of their interaction with materials, as an energy source for weapons effects, as a source for ICF experiments, and as a source for weapons physics experiments. Because of management\´s interest in encouraging the development of new applications to this technology, we did a year-long comparative assessment study that involved surveying scientists engaged in such research. The literature is filled with examples of "benchmarking" in the manufacturing and service industries; however, we found only one documented case where scientific research had been benchmarked. Our experience in benchmarking an area of scientific research and some of our findings are described in the paper.