Los Alamos pinhole camera (LAPC): A new flexible x-ray pinhole camera

We have recently designed, built, and fielded a versatile, multichannel x-ray pinhole camera. The Los Alamos pinhole camera was designed to fit into any 6 in. manipulator (SIM) which is a standardized target chamber diagnostic tube. There are currently compatible SIMs available at the Trident, Omega, and NOVA laser systems. The camera uses nine pinholes in a 3×3 array to produce images at the film plane. The film housing is designed to hold multiple sheets of stacked x-ray film which also uses a dark slide to protect the film before exposure. Magnifications of 12, 8, 4, and 2X are selected by slip-on nose cones, which support pinholes, collimators, and blast shields. Individual channel filtering is provided by a 3×3 filter pack containing nine separate filter sub packs. Spatial resolution is limited by the pinhole diffraction limit and field of view is dependent on magnification and filter pack diameter.