Development of µ-PIC as a time-resolved X-ray area detector

The application of a two-dimensional micro-pixel gas chamber (µ-PIC) to X-ray diffraction studies, and its performance, are reported. µ-PIC has a 10 cm × 10 cm detection area, and a fast-readout system for real-time X-ray imaging has been developed. Using the timing of each incoming X-ray measured by µ-PIC, continuous rotation photograph measurements were carried out for a 400 µm-diameter spherical organic crystal of Ylid (C₁₁H₁₀O₂S), and then diffraction spots were successfully obtained within 2θ of 49°. As a result, good internal agreement factors of 3.7% and 7.0% were confirmed among each of the symmetrically equivalent reflections for exposure times of 3700 s and 98 s, respectively.