Close-in nosecone configuration and blast damage in point backlight x-ray radiography

Radiography of driven targets using point projection backlighting often requires extensive baffling to mitigate background x rays and physical damage due to target debris. One solution to this problem is a camera configuration that places the nosecone very close to the target such that extraneous light is excluded; however debris and blast damage becomes an issue. A successful close-in (<5 mm from target center) nosecone configuration fielded at the OMEGA laser on a halfraum driven by 6 kJ is described. The design excludes stray light and survives the radiation flux and blast damage due to debris and late-time target expansion. Estimates of blast loading are compared to experimental observations of damage