A setup for ultrafast time-resolved x-ray absorption spectroscopy

We present a setup which allows the measurement of time-resolved x-ray absorption spectra with picosecond temporal resolution on liquid samples at the Advanced Light Source at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratories. The temporal resolution is limited by the pulse width of the synchrotron source. We characterize the different sources of noise that limit the experiment and present a single-pulse detection scheme. (C) 2004 American Institute of Physics.