Compact XUV excimer radiation sources and their application

Low energy electron beam excitation of dense helium and neon was used for light production in the extreme ultraviolet (XUV) wavelength range. The entire system was completely filled with the working gas avoiding the use of vacuum equipment for light production, propagation and detection. Emission spectra from He and Ne are dominated by the second continua with peak intensities at 80 and 83 nm, respectively. The hydrogen Lyman-α line was observed as the dominant impurity line. This XUV light source was used for transmission measurements of LiF near its absorption edge.