Development of pulsed laser systems and cathode-performance studies for the S-DALINAC polarized injector

Abstract

A source of polarized electrons has recently been implemented at the superconducting Darmstadt electron linear accelerator S-DALINAC. We give an overview of the recent performance of the system. Photo-emission from a superlattice-GaAs photo-cathode is obtained from using either a DC diode laser or a short-pulse Ti:Sapphire laser system. For a robust pulsed quasi-cw operation, it is investigated whether a VECSEL system (Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser) can be realized with a wavelength of 780 nm and a repetition rate of 3 GHz with pulse widths of a few picoseconds only. To enhance the availability and performance of the polarized source with respect to quantum efficiency, a separate atomic-hydrogen cleaning system for the cathodes is planned which will allow cathode treatment to be tested and optimized