Traditional X-ray sources are only efficient at generating hard X-rays, such as those applied in radiography, crystallography, and chemical analysis. The potential applications of soft X-rays have long been realized, but until recently these X-rays have only been generated via a type of particle accelerator called a synchrotron. While very efficient, synchrotrons are neither compact or user-friendly. An alternative to the synchrotron for producing soft X-rays is the laser-plasma source. The development of efficient laser plasma sources constitutes a leap forward in the field, and could open...