Interpretation of some X-ray and XUV absorption experiments using SCO

We review some X-ray and XUV absorption experiments on aluminium and germanium making systematic comparison between theory and experiment with the help of the superconfiguration code SCO. The objective is to identify areas that require further theoretical development. As for the low and medium Z elements considered, the statistical term treatment essential in the superconfiguration method is less physically sound than a detailed line-by-line treatment. Nevertheless, we comment on recent spectroscopic measurements at near solid density that suggest a larger domain of validity for statistical approximation than previously thought. We will also address some specific theoretical issues that affect the absorption structures such as orbital relaxation in the final state of optical transitions and the broadening of spectral lines by collisions with electrons.