Static characterization of aerogel targets for high energy density physics using x-ray radiography

Abstract

Knowledge of the density of aerogel foams used in high energy density physics experiments is crucial for simulating and understanding the results of experiments. An average density for the foams is gravimetrically determined, but provides no information on the uniformity of the density. X-ray radiography is used to determine the density uniformity of the foams and the average density of the foams. A comparison between a monochromatic and polychromatic method of determining the density from the x-ray radiography is performed and compared to the gravimetric results.