The European XFEL delivers up to 27000 intense (>1012 photons) pulses per second, of ultrashort (≤50 fs) and transversely coherent X-ray radiation, at a maximum repetition rate of 4.5 MHz. Its unique X-ray beam parameters enable groundbreaking experiments in matter at extreme conditions at the High Energy Density (HED) scientific instrument. The performance of the HED instrument during its first two years of operation, its scientific remit, as well as ongoing installations towards full operation are presented. Scientific goals of HED include the investigation of extreme states of matter created by intense laser pulses, diamond anvil cells, or pulsed magnets, and ultrafast X-ray methods that allow their diagnosis using self-amplified spontaneous emission between 5 and 25 keV, coupled with X-ray monochromators and optional seeded beam operation. The HED instrument provides two target chambers, X-ray spectrometers for emission and scattering, X-ray detectors, and a timing tool to correct for residual timing jitter between laser and X-ray pulses.

We present a method to determine the bulk temperature of a single crystal diamond sample at an X-Ray free electron laser using inelastic X-ray scattering. The experiment was performed at the high energy density instrument at the European XFEL GmbH, Germany. The technique, based on inelastic X-ray scattering and the principle of detailed balance, was demonstrated to give accurate temperature measurements, within 8% for both room temperature diamond and heated diamond to 500 K. Here, the temperature was increased in a controlled way using a resistive heater to test theoretical predictions of the scaling of the signal with temperature. The method was tested by validating the energy of the phonon modes with previous measurements made at room temperature using inelastic X-ray scattering and neutron scattering techniques. This technique could be used to determine the bulk temperature in transient systems with a temporal resolution of 50 fs and for which accurate measurements of thermodynamic properties are vital to build accurate equation of state and transport models.From the thermal shield of a spacecraft during atmospheric re-entry 1 to the interior of Jovian planets 2 , matter is often found at pressures and temperatures that are at the limits of where conventional condensed matter and plasma physics formalisms are valid 3 . At such extreme conditions, the kinetic energy of the electrons is comparable to the potential energy of interaction between electrons and the nuclei. For these systems, direct and accurate measurements of thermodynamic and transport properties are vital. Extreme states of matter can be produced by dynamic laser-driven compression [4][5][6] and laser heating techniques 7,8 . These methods can excite a material into a transient state of simultaneously high density and temperature, and thereby enable access to previously unexplored regions of phase space. State-of-the-art experiments investigate the properties of materials driven into these conditions by coupling high-energy lasers with suitable probing techniques 9,10 . In particular, X-ray scattering has proven to be a powerful tool for determining the structure and density, and the development of

We present a method to determine the bulk temperature of a single crystal diamond sample at an X-Ray free electron laser using inelastic X-ray scattering. The experiment was performed at the high energy density instrument at the European XFEL GmbH, Germany. The technique, based on inelastic X-ray scattering and the principle of detailed balance, was demonstrated to give accurate temperature measurements, within 8% for both room temperature diamond and heated diamond to 500 K. Here, the temperature was increased in a controlled way using a resistive heater to test theoretical predictions of the scaling of the signal with temperature. The method was tested by validating the energy of the phonon modes with previous measurements made at room temperature using inelastic X-ray scattering and neutron scattering techniques. This technique could be used to determine the bulk temperature in transient systems with a temporal resolution of 50 fs and for which accurate measurements of thermodynamic properties are vital to build accurate equation of state and transport models. From the thermal shield of a spacecraft during atmospheric re-entry 1 to the interior of Jovian planets 2 , matter is often found at pressures and temperatures that are at the limits of where conventional condensed matter and plasma physics formalisms are valid 3. At such extreme conditions, the kinetic energy of the electrons is comparable to the potential energy of interaction between electrons and the nuclei. For these systems, direct and accurate measurements of thermodynamic and transport properties are vital. Extreme states of matter can be produced by dynamic laser-driven compression 4-6 and laser heating techniques 7,8. These methods can excite a material into a transient state of simultaneously high density and temperature, and thereby enable access to previously unexplored regions of phase space. State-of-the-art experiments investigate the properties of materials driven into these conditions by coupling high-energy lasers with suitable probing techniques 9,10. In particular, X-ray scattering has proven to be a powerful tool for determining the structure and density, and the development of

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