Application of Pixel array detectors at X-ray synchrotrons

Abstract

Pixel array detectors have only recently been seriously used at x-ray synchrotrons. We describe the application of a digital pixel array detector (Pilatus100k) to a variety of synchrotron experiments at the Advanced Photon Source at Argonne National Laboratory. The Pilatus100k was developed at the Paul Scherrer Institut (PSI). It has been commercialized by a PSI spinoff (Dectrics Ltd.) This is the first commercially available pixel array detector for x-ray synchrotron applications. The APS synchrotron provides tunable x-ray pulses with duration of ∼80 ps and a repetition period of 153 ns (24-bunch mode). The Pilatus100k is a direct detection x-ray detector where each 172 micron pixel counts individual x-ray pulses above a lower threshold. It consists of ∼100k pixels each of which is capable of single-photon counting (>3 keV) at count rates up to ∼1 MHz. In addition, the Pilatus100k is an electronically gateable detector. We present data showing that the Pilatus100k is capable of isolating a single x-ray bunch at the APS in 24 bunch mode. We will also present a variety of different experiments exploiting the unique capabilities of the Pilatus100k.