VUV Laser Paves the Way for X-Ray Free-Electron Laser

After successfully constructing a self-amplification spontaneous-emission, free-electron laser that performs well in the vacuum-UV wavelength band, researchers have set their sights on producing an x-ray free-electron laser with a minimal wavelength of 0.1 nm.

In the March 11 issue of Physical Review Letters, the group reported that the vacuum-UV laser at the Deutsches Elektronen Synchrotron in Hamburg, Germany, has produced 80- to 120-nm tunable, gigawatt-level power, 30- to 100-fs pulses with a peak brilliance that is eight orders of magnitude higher than current third-generation synchrotron radiation sources.

The research is the product of Tesla -- a collaboration of 44 institutes from 10 countries. Work on a 6-nm free-electron laser is scheduled to begin in 2003, with the goal of constructing an x-ray free-electron laser by the end of the decade.