Accelerators for Discovery Science and Security applications

Abstract

Several Advanced Energy Systems (AES) accelerator projects that span applications in Discovery Science and Security are described. The design and performance of the IR and THz free electron laser (FEL) at the Fritz-Haber-Institut der Max-Planck-Gesellschaft in Berlin that is now an operating user facility for physical chemistry research in molecular and cluster spectroscopy as well as surface science, is highlighted. The device was designed to meet challenging specifications, including a final energy adjustable in the range of 15–50MeV, low longitudinal emittance (<50keV-psec) and transverse emittance (<20πmm-mrad), at more than 200 pC bunch charge with a micropulse repetition rate of 1GHz and a macropulse length of up to 15μs. Secondly, we will describe an ongoing effort to develop an ultrafast electron diffraction (UED) source that is scheduled for completion in 2015 with prototype testing taking place at the Brookhaven National Laboratory (BNL) Accelerator Test Facility (ATF). This tabletop X-band system will find application in time-resolved chemical imaging and as a resource for drug–cell interaction analysis. A third active area at AES is accelerators for security applications where we will cover some top-level aspects of THz and X-ray systems that are under development and in testing for stand-off and portal detection.