Published online by Cambridge University Press: 10 February 2011
An integrated technique of diamond-anvil cell, laser-heating and synchrotron x-ray diffraction technologies is capable of structural investigation of condensed matter in an extended region of high pressures and temperatures above 100 GPa and 3000 K. The feasibility of this technique to obtain reliable data, however, strongly depends on several experimental issues, including optical and x-ray setups, thermal gradients, pressure homogeneity, preferred orientation, and chemical reaction. In this paper, we discuss about these experimental issues together with future perspectives of this technique for obtaining accurate data.