Diffraction studies at extreme pressure-temperature conditions encounter intrinsic difficulties due to the small access angle of the diamond anvil cell and the high background of the diffraction peaks. Energy-dispersive x-ray diffraction is ideal for overcoming these difficulties and allows the collection and display of diffracted signals on the order of seconds, but is limited to one-dimensional information. Materials at high pressures in diamond anvil cells, particularly during simultaneous laser heating to temperatures greater than 3000 K often form coarse crystals and develop preferred orientation, and thus require information in a second dimension for complete analysis. We have developed and applied a diamond cell rotation method for in situ energy-dispersive x-ray diffraction at high pressures and temperatures in solving this problem. With this method, we can record the x-ray diffraction as a function of χ angle over 360°, and we can acquire sufficient information for the determination of high P–T phase diagrams, structural properties, and equations of state. Technical details are presented along with experimental results for iron and boron. © 2001 American Institute of Physics.