Uncertainty quantification and sensitivity analysis of backlit x-ray radiographs

Summary form only given. Current feature extraction from mono-energetic backlit radiography for HED physics experiments lacks rigorous uncertainty quantification and sensitivity analysis. We present a method to determine uncertainty bounds of source intensity, background and attenuation coefficient in the mono-energetic case, through propagating known experimental uncertainties through a numerical fit. Comparing the fit-retrieved absorption coefficient to the nominal value presents a method to validate the mono-energetic photon transport model for these radiographs. A preliminary sensitivity analysis shows that source uniformity, as well as a background x-ray spectrum might be significant. This is supported by previous experiments that have measured a high-energy source likely due to hot electrons producing bremsstrahlung or K-α emission in the Ta shield.