In situ calibration of microchannel-plate-based x-ray pinhole camera for observation of magnetically trapped plasma

The electronic amplification gain of a microchannel plate (MCP), as employed for detector and image amplifier of an x-ray pinhole camera, tends to decrease as the output current increases, posing problems both in quantitative analyses and in construction of a three-dimensional emissivity distribution. We report that the output-current dependent MCP gain is described in a simple empirical formula that is determined by an in situ calibration experiment using a steady-state low-temperature discharge plasma. We examine the validity of the formula affirmatively in correcting raw data of x-ray images of magnetically trapped hot plasma. It is also demonstrated that the correction leads to a three-dimensional distribution of soft x-ray emissivity in a quadrupole-mirror-trapped hot plasma that is consistent with other indirect measurements.