Damage-resistant single-pulse optics for x-ray free electron lasers
Short-pulse ultraviolet and x-ray free electron lasers of unprecedented peak brightness are in the process of revolutionizing physics, chemistry, and biology. Optical components for these new light sources have to be able to withstand exposure to the extremely high-fluence photon pulses. Whereas most optics have been designed to stay intact for many pulses, it has also been suggested that single-pulse optics that function during the pulse but disintegrate on a longer timescale, may be useful at higher fluences than multiple-pulse optics. In this paper we will review damage-resistant single-pulse optics that recently have been demonstrated at the FLASH soft-x-ray laser facility at DESY, including mirrors, apertures, and nanolenses. It was found that these objects stay intact for the duration of the 25-fs FLASH pulse, even when exposed to fluences that exceed the melt damage threshold by fifty times or more. We present a computational model for the FLASH laser-material interaction to analyze the extent to which the optics still function during the pulse. Comparison to experimental results obtained at FLASH shows good quantitative agreement.
- Research Organization:
- Lawrence Livermore National Lab. (LLNL), Livermore, CA (United States)
- Sponsoring Organization:
- USDOE
- DOE Contract Number:
- W-7405-ENG-48
- OSTI ID:
- 908137
- Report Number(s):
- UCRL-CONF-230792; TRN: US0703645
- Resource Relation:
- Journal Volume: 6586; Conference: Presented at: Optics and Optoelectronics, Prague, Czech Republic, Apr 16 - Apr 19, 2007
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
Similar Records
Damage threshold of inorganic solids under free-electron-laser irradiation at 32.5 nm wavelength
Multilayers are enabling new science with x-ray free electron lasers