X-ray spectropolarimetry of high-temperature plasmas

X-ray spectropolarimetry is a powerful new tool for investigating the anisotropy of high-temperature plasmas. It is sensitive to the energetic electron distribution function and magnetic field, which, in general, have not been measured adequately. This diagnostic is based on the theoretical modeling of x-ray line polarization-dependent spectra measured simultaneously by spectrometers with different sensitivities to polarization. The increasing sophistication of spectroscopic monitoring of high-temperature plasmas has led to the necessity to account for both non-Maxwellian electron distribution functions and polarization properties of lines. This diagnostic can be applied to a broad range of plasmas, from low-density astrophysical plasmas to dense z-pinch plasmas. This work shows how x-ray spectropolarimetry complements the usual spectroscopic monitoring of hot plasmas and demonstrates the importance of accounting for x-ray line polarization in plasma diagnostics. (C) 2001 American Institute of Physics.