Gas Detector LCLS Engineering Specifications Document

There are two Gas Detectors, located upstream and downstream of the FEL attenuation materials, which provide a non-intrusive measure of the FEL pulse energy in the fundamental, in real-time, on a pulse-by-pulse basis. The FEL operators and the users will use this information to monitor the performance of the FEL and the Attenuator and to cross-calibrate other detectors. The Gas Detectors measure the FEL pulse energy by measuring the fluorescence induced in a small volume of N{sub 2} gas by the passage of the FEL

Absorbed XFEL dose in the components of the LCLS X-Ray Optics

We list the materials that are anticipated to be placed into the Linac Coherent Light Source (LCLS) x-ray free electron laser (XFEL) beam line, their positions, and the absorbed dose, and compare this dose with anticipated damage thresholds

Extending the size-parameter range for plane-wave light scattering from infinite homogeneous circular cylinders

We have developed an algorithm that extends the possible size-parameter range for the calculation of plane-wave light scattering from infinite homogeneous circular cylinders using a Mie-type analysis. Our algorithm is based on the calculation of the ratios of Bessel functions instead of calculating the Bessel functions or their logarithmic derivatives directly. We have found that this algorithm agrees with existing methods (when those methods converge). We have also found that our algorithm converges in cases of very large size parameters, in which case other algorithms often do not

Reflection of attosecond x-ray free electron laser pulses

In order to utilize hard x-ray free electron lasers (XFEL's) when they are extended to attosecond pulse lengths, it is necessary to choose optical elements with minimal response time. Specular grazing incidence optics made of low-Z materials are popular candidates for reflectors since they are likely to withstand x-ray damage and provide sufficiently large reflectivities. Using linear-optics reflection theory, we calculated the transient reflectivity of a delta-function electric pulse from a homogeneous semi-infinite medium as a function of angle of incidence for s- and p-polarized light. We specifically considered the pulse response of Be, diamond, silicon carbide, and silicon, all of which are of relevance to the XFEL's that are currently being built. We found that the media emit energy in a damped oscillatory way, and that the impulse-response times are shorter than 0.3 fs for normal incidence. For grazing incidence, the impulse-response time is substantially shorter, making grazing-incidence mirrors a good choice for deep-sub-femtosecond reflective optics

Interaction of VUV-FEL radiation with B4C and SiC at 32nm wavelength

The output fluence and pulse duration of XFELs such as LCLS and TESLA will pose significant challenges to the optical components which may be damaged by the XFEL beam [1]. It is expected that low-atomic-number materials such as SiC, B{sub 4}C, and diamond exhibit weak absorption and therefore are damaged least. It has been suggested that the fundamental damage mechanism that determines the fluence damage threshold for single-shot exposures is thermal melting of the materials [2]. For multiple-shot exposures, the damage threshold is potentially lower than the melt threshold due to fatigue effects associated with mechanical stresses during to thermal cycling [3]

Space-Charge Effects in the Gas Detector

Discussion of space-charge effects in a photoluminescence cell that will be used as a non-disruptive total energy monitor at the LCLS facility is presented. Regimes where primary photoelectrons will be confined within the X-ray beam aperture are identified. Effects of the space-charge on the further evolution of the electron and ion populations are discussed. Parameters of the afterglow plasma are evaluated. Conditions under which the detector output will be proportional to the pulse energy are defined

SPEDEN: Reconstructing single particles from their diffraction patterns

Speden is a computer program that reconstructs the electron density of single particles from their x-ray diffraction patterns, using a single-particle adaptation of the Holographic Method in crystallography. (Szoke, A., Szoke, H., and Somoza, J.R., 1997. Acta Cryst. A53, 291-313.) The method, like its parent, is unique that it does not rely on ``back'' transformation from the diffraction pattern into real space and on interpolation within measured data. It is designed to deal successfully with sparse, irregular, incomplete and noisy data. It is also designed to use prior information for ensuring sensible results and for reliable convergence. This article describes the theoretical basis for the reconstruction algorithm, its implementation and quantitative results of tests on synthetic and experimentally obtained data. The program could be used for determining the structure of radiation tolerant samples and, eventually, of large biological molecular structures without the need for crystallization.Comment: 12 pages, 10 figure

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