Development of soft x-ray sources with electron guns of field emission- and thermal cathode-types and their application to counter experiments

Soft X-ray sources have been developed with electron guns of field emission- and thermal cathode-types. Those sources are used mainly to investigate the electron drift and avalanche properties in a gas counter. Thin films of aluminum, titanium, iron, copper and nickel are used as the X-ray targets. Beams of quasi-monochromatic X-rays are obtained with these targets. The emitted X-rays consist of characteristic and bremsstrahlung radiations, which are checked by using a high purity germanium detector. Generation of pulsed X-rays is also tried. As an example of the application of the X-ray source, results of measurements of the SQS (Self Quenching Streamer) phenomenon in a gas counter have been shown.