Single-shot measurements of plasmons in compressed diamond with an x-ray laser

Strong plasmon resonances characteristics of electron density fluctuations have recently been observed in dynamically compressed diamond for the first time at the Linac Coherent Light Source. These experiments observe the forward scattering spectra from 8 keV x-ray pulses at record peak brightness to probe laser-compressed diamond foils at the Matter in Extreme Conditions instrument. We demonstrate single-shot measurements of the x-ray scattering spectrum, which are sensitive to the temperatures and densities of the compressed samples. The inferred values from the inelastic scattering are compared to simulations, finding good agreement with the temperature and demonstrating the need to include solid state effects in the modeling of the plasmon oscillation. (c) 2015 AIP Publishing LLC.