NIST-NRL free-electron laser. Status report

Technical Report · Mon Jan 01 04:00:00 EST 1990

OSTI ID:6112165

Debenham, P H; Ayres, R L; Cassatt, W A; Johnson, B C; Johnson, R G

A free-electron laser (FEL) user facility is being constructed. The FEL, which will be operated as an oscillator, will be driven by the 17 MeV to 185 MeV to 185 MeV electron beam of the NIST continuous-wave racetrack microtron. Anticipated performance of the FEL includes: wavelength tuneable from 200 nm to 10 micrometers; a continuous train of 3-ps pulses at either 16.5 or 66.1 MHz; and average power of 10 W to 200 W. Construction of the RTM will be completed in January 1991. The measured rms field error is 0.6%, which is sufficiently small for good gain. With a full-scale model of the 9-m-long optical cavity, we have developed a method of aligning the cavity end mirrors to the required accuracy using white light and an autocollimator/telescope. We have performed three-dimensional simulations of performance including the effects of the electron beam (emittance, pulse length and shape, and timing jitter), undulator field errors, and cavity losses. These calculations predict adequate gain for lasing across the full wavelength range.

• Research Organization: National Inst. of Standards and Technology, Gaithersburg, MD (USA)
• OSTI ID: 6112165
• Report Number(s): AD-A-227310/0/XAB; CNN: N00014-87-F-0066
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

42 ENGINEERING
426002* -- Engineering-- Lasers & Masers-- (1990-)
43 PARTICLE ACCELERATORS
430100 -- Particle Accelerators-- Design
Development
& Operation
ACCELERATORS
ACCURACY
ALIGNMENT
AMPLIFICATION
BEAM EMITTANCE
BEAMS
COMPUTERIZED SIMULATION
CONSTRUCTION
CYCLIC ACCELERATORS
CYCLOTRONS
DESIGN
ELECTRON BEAMS
ELECTRONIC EQUIPMENT
EQUIPMENT
ERRORS
FREE ELECTRON LASERS
GAIN
LASER CAVITIES
LASERS
LEPTON BEAMS
MATHEMATICAL MODELS
MICROTRONS
MIRRORS
OSCILLATORS
PARTICLE BEAMS
PERFORMANCE
POWER
PULSES
RACETRACK MICROTRONS
SIMULATION
TUNING
USES