SHORT-RANGE ORDER IN LIQUID MATTER PROBED BY HIGH-TEMPERATURE X-RAY-ABSORPTION MEASUREMENTS

X-ray absorption spectroscopy can be applied to the study of liquid ma tter yielding quantitative structural information on the short-range o rder. Recent experimental advances and a new single-energy detection t echnique suitable for monitoring phase transition and supercooling phe nomena are described. Examples of the change in absorption at the melt ing of Ge and Ag are presented. The general theoretical framework for the interpretation of the spectra is reviewed.