High-gain Harmonic Generation Free-electron Laser Research Articles

High-repetition-rate seeded free-electron laser enhanced by self-modulation

The spectroscopic methods for the ultrafast electronic and structural dynamics of materials require fully coherent extreme ultraviolet and soft X-ray radiation with high-average brightness. Seeded free-electron lasers (FELs) are ideal sources for delivering fully coherent soft X-ray pulses. However, due to state-of-the-art laser system limitations, it is challenging to meet the ultraviolet seed laser’s requirements of sufficient energy modulation and high repetition rates simultaneously. The self-modulation scheme has been proposed and recently demonstrated in a seeded FEL to relax the seed laser requirements. Using numerical simulations, we show that the required seed laser intensity in the self-modulation is ~3 orders of magnitude lower than that in the standard high-gain harmonic generation (HGHG). The harmonic self-modulation can launch a single-stage HGHG FEL lasing at the 30th harmonic of the seed laser. Moreover, the proof-of-principle experimental results confirm that the harmonic self-modulation can still amplify the laser-induced energy modulation. These achievements reveal that the self-modulation can not only remarkably reduce the requirements of the seed laser but also improve the harmonic upconversion efficiency, which paves the way for realizing high-repetition-rate and fully coherent soft X-ray FELs.

Generating three-color pulses in high-gain harmonic-generation free-electron lasers with atilted electron bunch.

A multi-color light source is a significant tool for nonlinear optics experiments, pump-dump/repump-probe experiments and in other fields. Here, a novel method is proposed to create three-color pulses based on a high-gain harmonic-generation (HGHG) free-electron laser with a tilted electron bunch. In this method, the initial bunch tilt is created by transverse wakefields after the bunch passes through a corrugated structure with an off-axis orbit, and is further enlarged in a following drift section. Then the tilted bunch experiences the off-axis field of a quadrupole magnet to cool down the large transverse velocity induced before. After that, it enters an HGHG configuration adopting a transverse gradient undulator (TGU) as the radiator, where only three separated fractions of the tilted bunch will resonate at three adjacent harmonics of the seed wavelength and are enabled to emit three-color pulses simultaneously. In addition, the use of the natural transverse gradient of a normal planar undulator instead of the TGU radiator to emit three-color pulses is also studied in detail. Numerical simulations including the generation of the tilted bunch and the free-electron laser radiation confirm the validity and feasibility of this scheme both for the TGU radiator and the natural gradient in the extreme-ultraviolet waveband.

Generation of coherent two-color pulses at two adjacent harmonics in a seeded free-electron laser

The growing requirements of pump-probe techniques and nonlinear optics experiments greatly promote the studies of two-color free-electron lasers (FELs). We propose a new method to generate coherent two-color pulses in a high-gain harmonic generation (HGHG) FEL. In this scheme, an initial tilted electron beam is sent though the modulator and dispersive section of an HGHG FEL to generate the bunching at harmonics of the seed laser. Then a transverse gradient undulator (TGU) is adopted as the radiator and in such radiator, only two separated fractions of the tilted beam will resonate at two adjacent harmonics of the seed laser and are enabled to emit the coherent two-color pulses simultaneously. The time separation between the two pulses are on the order of hundreds of femtoseconds, and can be precisely controlled by varying the tilted amplitude of the electron beam and/or the transverse gradient of the TGU radiator. Numerical simulations confirm the validity and feasibility of this scheme in the EUV waveband.

Study of the output pulse stability of a cascaded high-gain harmonic generation free-electron laser

Cascading stages of high-gain harmonic generation (HGHG) have been demonstrated to be a promising candidate for producing fully coherent soft X-ray radiation directly from UV seed sources. However, the large shot-to-shot output pulse energy fluctuation may still be a serious problem for its user applications. In this paper, we study the effects of various electron beam parameters jitters on the output pulse energy fluctuations of a two-stage HGHG. Theoretical calculations and intensive simulations have been performed and the results demonstrate that the relative timing jitter between the electron bunch and the seed laser pulse is mainly responsible for the large output pulse energy fluctuation. Several methods that may be helpful to improve the FEL stability have also been discussed.

Beam energy distribution influences on density modulation efficiency in seeded free-electron lasers

The beam energy spread at the entrance of an undulator system is of paramount importance for efficient density modulation in high-gain seeded free-electron lasers (FELs). In this paper, the dependences of high harmonic bunching efficiency in high-gain harmonic generation (HGHG), echo-enabled harmonic generation (EEHG) and phase-merging enhanced harmonic generation (PEHG) schemes on the electron beam energy spread distribution are studied. Theoretical investigations and multidimensional numerical simulations are applied to the cases of uniform and saddle beam energy distributions and compared to a traditional Gaussian distribution. It shows that the uniform and saddle electron energy distributions significantly enhance the bunching performance of HGHG FELs, while they almost have no influence on EEHG and PEHG schemes. A further start-to-end simulation example demonstrated that, with the saddle distribution of sliced beam energy spread controlled by a laser heater, the 30th harmonic can be directly generated by a single-stage HGHG scheme for a soft x-ray FEL facility.

Generation of Coherent Extreme-Ultraviolet Radiation Carrying Orbital Angular Momentum

We propose an effective scheme for the generation of intense coherent extreme-ultraviolet light beams carrying orbital angular momentum (OAM). The light is produced by a high-gain harmonic-generation free-electron laser (FEL), seeded using a laser pulse with a transverse staircaselike phase pattern. During amplification, diffraction and mode selection drive the radiation profile towards a dominant OAM mode at saturation. With a seed laser at 260 nm, gigawatt power levels are obtained at wavelengths approaching those of soft x rays. Compared to other proposed schemes to generate OAM with FELs, our approach is robust, easier to implement, and can be integrated into already existing FEL facilities without extensive modifications of the machine layout.

Impact of Non-Gaussian Electron Energy Heating upon the Performance of a Seeded Free-Electron Laser

Laser-heater systems have been demonstrated to be an important component for the accelerators that drive high gain free electron laser (FEL) facilities. These heater systems suppress longitudinal microbunching instabilities by inducing a small and controllable slice energy spread to the electron beam. For transversely uniform heating, the energy spread augmentation is characterized by a non-Gaussian distribution. In this Letter, we demonstrate experimentally that in addition to suppression of the microbunching instability, the laser heater-induced energy distribution can be preserved to the FEL undulator entrance, significantly impacting the performance of high-gain harmonic generation (HGHG) FELs, especially at soft x-ray wavelengths. In particular, we show that the FEL intensity has several local maxima as a function of the induced heating caused by the non-Gaussian energy distribution together with a strong enhancement of the power at high harmonics relative to that expected for an electron beam with an equivalent Gaussian energy spread at an undulator entrance. These results suggest that a single stage HGHG FEL can produce scientifically interesting power levels at harmonic numbers m ≥ 25 and with current seed laser technology could reach output photon energies above 100 eV or greater.

Two-colour pump–probe experiments with a twin-pulse-seed extreme ultraviolet free-electron laser

Exploring the dynamics of matter driven to extreme non-equilibrium states by an intense ultrashort X-ray pulse is becoming reality, thanks to the advent of free-electron laser technology that allows development of different schemes for probing the response at variable time delay with a second pulse. Here we report the generation of two-colour extreme ultraviolet pulses of controlled wavelengths, intensity and timing by seeding of high-gain harmonic generation free-electron laser with multiple independent laser pulses. The potential of this new scheme is demonstrated by the time evolution of a titanium-grating diffraction pattern, tuning the two coherent pulses to the titanium M-resonance and varying their intensities. This reveals that an intense pulse induces abrupt pattern changes on a time scale shorter than hydrodynamic expansion and ablation. This result exemplifies the essential capabilities of the jitter-free multiple-colour free-electron laser pulse sequences to study evolving states of matter with element sensitivity.

Demonstration of a widely-tunable and fully-coherent high-gain harmonic-generation free-electron laser

Free-electron lasers (FELs) are fourth-generation light sources that deliver extremely high intensity, ultrashort light pulses over a broad wavelength range from far-infrared to hard x ray. FELs based on the self-amplified spontaneous emission principle have been successfully operated with ultrahigh brightness and a broad wavelengths tuning range with good transverse coherence but poor temporal coherence. In contrast, the laser-seeded FELs have provided full coherence but at selected central wavelengths, usually the harmonics of the laser seeds, with relatively narrower tuning range. We report the experimental demonstration of a high-gain harmonic-generation (HGHG) FEL that is continuously tunable over a wide range using the combination of optical parametrical amplification, variable-gap undulator, and harmonic selection, where the temporal coherence is preserved as confirmed with the Michelson interferometry. In order to achieve higher photon energies, the first try of cascaded HGHG with a fresh-bunch technique is also made at the Shanghai Deep Ultraviolet Free-electron Laser test facility. DOI: 10.1103/PhysRevSTAB.16.020704

High-Gain Harmonic-Generation Free-Electron Laser Seeded by Harmonics Generated in Gas

The injection of a seed in a free-electron laser (FEL) amplifier reduces the saturation length and improves the longitudinal coherence. A cascaded FEL, operating in the high-gain harmonic-generation regime, allows us to extend the beneficial effects of the seed to shorter wavelengths. We report on the first operation of a high-gain harmonic-generation free-electron laser, seeded with harmonics generated in gas. The third harmonics of a Ti:sapphire laser, generated in a gas cell, has been amplified and up-converted to its second harmonic (λ(rad)=133 nm) in a FEL cascaded configuration based on a variable number of modulators and radiators. We studied the transition between coherent harmonic generation and superradiant regime, optimizing the laser performances with respect to the number of modulators and radiators.

Three-dimensional numerical investigations of the laser-beam interactions in an undulator

Laser-beam interaction in an undulator is commonly suggested in the development of free electron laser (FEL) schemes. In this paper, a three-dimensional algorithm is developed to assist in laser-beam interaction simulation in an undulator, which is built on the basis of the fundamentals of electrodynamics, i.e. the electron's behavior is determined by the magnetic field and the laser electric field in the time domain. On the basis of the algorithm, the detuning effect in a laser heater, the carrier envelope phase effect of a few-cycle laser in attosecond X-ray FEL schemes and output wavelength tuning in a high gain harmonic generation FEL are numerically discussed.

Spontaneous emission high-gain harmonic generation free-electron laser

A scheme, spontaneous emission high-gain harmonic generation (SEHG) free-electron laser (FEL), is proposed and analyzed for generating the X-ray FEL. The SEHG scheme works in a similar mechanism as high-gain harmonic generation (HGHG), but without the need for a seed laser. The scheme requires two undulators. The 1st undulator must be sufficiently long so that the energies of electrons are modulated within the bunch, but still away from saturation. A dispersion section is followed to transfer energy modulation into density modulation. The 2nd undulator simply serves as a radiator. A simple, one-dimensional, analytical estimation of SEHG is given to show the process of energy modulation and optimize the system parameters. The three-dimensional FEL simulation code, GENESIS, has been used to simulate, verify, and optimize the SEHG scheme for the soft X-ray free-electron laser (SXFEL) project in China. The simulation results are presented in comparison with the self-amplified spontaneous emission (SASE) and HGHG schemes. At 9 nm radiation wavelength, up to 120 MW of output power can be achieved by the SEHG scheme, with a total length of 47.3 m long undulators. Though the undulator length is comparable with the SASE scheme, the output bandwidth of the SEHG scheme is smaller. Moreover, it is tunable and does not require a seed laser. The SEHG scheme offers an attractive alternative option for the X-ray FEL.

Field evolution of harmonic radiation in an HGHG FEL

As a natural character of high gain free electron laser (FEL), harmonic radiation is regarded as the natural extenstons to short wavelengths. In high gain harmonic generation (HGHG) scheme, harmonic evolution may be attributed to the initial harmonic bunching, self amplification of the harmonic radiation, electron beam strongly bunched by the fundamental radiation, the faster longitudinal dynamics and the fundamental synchrotron oscillation. It is more complex than harmonic evolution in other FEL schemes. In this paper, via theoretical analyses and three dimensional simulations, a general description of different aspects of harmonic evolution in the HGHG process is presented.

Harmonic operation of high gain harmonic generation free electron laser**Supported by Major State Basic Research Development Program of China (2002CB713600)

In high gain harmonic generation (HGHG) free electron laser (FEL), with the right choice of parameters of the modulator undulator, the dispersive section and the seed laser, one may make the spatial bunching of the electron beam density distribution correspond to one of the harmonic frequencies of the radiator radiation, instead of the fundamental frequency of the radiator radiation in conventional HGHG, thus the radiator undulator is in harmonic operation (HO) mode. In this paper, we investigate HO of HGHG FEL. Theoretical analyses with universal method are derived and numerical simulations in ultraviolet and deep ultraviolet spectral regions are given. It shows that the power of the 3rd harmonic radiation in the HO of HGHG may be as high as 18.5% of the fundamental power level. Thus HO of HGHG FEL may obtain short wavelength by using lower beam energy.

High-gain harmonic generation free electron laser seeded by few-cycle laser

Tunable output wavelength is an important character of a free electron laser (FEL). As generally understood, to alter the wavelength of a high-gain harmonic generation (HGHG) FEL laser, the seed laser must be tunable. A few-cycle, high intensity laser obtained by optical compression usually has pretty broad bandwidth in the spectral domain, which can be used as the seed laser of a HGHG and may open the possibility to approach a HGHG scheme with fully tunable wavelength. In this paper, a HGHG FEL seeded by a few-cycle laser is theoretically discussed and numerically investigated. A few-cycle seed laser significantly influences HGHG FEL performance, especially in output wavelength tuning. For a HGHG FEL seeded by a 4-cycle 786 nm laser, output wavelength tunability range up to 14.9% of the central wavelength 262 nm is observed by adjusting the resonant condition.

Short-pulse length effects of the seed laser in high-gain harmonic generation free-electron laser

In order to generate coherent hard x-ray free-electron laser ( FEL), cascading stages of high-gain harmonic generation ( HGHG) scheme usually employ seed pulse with longitudinal length down to tens of femtoseconds. Such a short pulse length ( SPL) seed laser, with broad bandwidth in the spectral domain, can no longer be characterized by monochromatic light in FEL equations. In this paper, a set of self-consistent, multifrequency FEL equations is derived to describe the interaction between the seed laser and the electrons in the modulator of HGHG. Moreover, the SPL effects of the seed laser on the electron beam's energy modulation, the output pulse length, the output peak power, and the output wavelength tuning in HGHG are theoretically and numerically investigated. Study demonstrates that the SPL seed laser seriously and significantly influences the HGHG performances, and these influences have to be taken into account in the design and optimization of the seeded FEL scheme.

High-gain harmonic generation free-electron laser with variable wavelength

The external seed of the high-gain harmonic generation (HGHG) free-electron laser (FEL) determines the wavelength of the output radiation. Therefore, the tunability of such a laser depends upon the tunability of the seed. In this paper, we present and discuss an alternative scheme for the tunable HGHG FEL wherein the seed's wavelength is fixed and the variations in the wavelength of radiation are achieved by tuning the accelerator. As an illustration, we apply our proposed scheme to the deep ultraviolet free electron laser (DUV FEL) at Brookhaven National Laboratory demonstrating the ability to attain about a +/-10% variation in the wavelength's tuning range.

Experimental study of a high-gain harmonic-generation free-electron laser in the ultraviolet

Saturation of a high-gain harmonic-generation free-electron laser (HGHG-FEL) at 266 nm has been accomplished at the Brookhaven National Laboratory/Deep Ultra Violet Free Electron Laser Facility (BNL/DUV-FEL) by seeding with an 800 nm Ti:sapphire laser. We describe the diagnostics used to characterize the electron beam and the FEL output. Analytic and simulation calculations of the HGHG output are presented and compared with the experimental data. We also discuss the chirped pulse amplification of a frequency chirped seed by an energy chirped electron beam. The third harmonic at 88 nm accompanying the 266 nm fundamental has been used in an ion pair imaging experiment in chemistry, the first application of the BNL/DUV-FEL.

Ultraviolet high-gain harmonic-generation free-electron laser at BNL

We report the first experimental results on a high-gain harmonic-generation (HGHG) free-electron laser (FEL) operating in the ultraviolet. An 800 nm seed from a Ti-Sapphire laser has been used to produce saturated amplified output at the 266 nm third-harmonic. The results confirm the advantages of the HGHG FEL: stable central wavelength, narrow bandwidth and small pulse energy fluctuation. The harmonic output at 88 nm, which accompanies the 266 nm radiation, has been used in an ion pair imaging experiment in chemistry.

First ultraviolet high-gain harmonic-generation free-electron laser.

We report the first experimental results on a high-gain harmonic-generation (HGHG) free-electron laser (FEL) operating in the ultraviolet. An 800 nm seed from a Ti:sapphire laser has been used to produce saturated amplified radiation at the 266 nm third harmonic. The results confirm the predictions for HGHG FEL operation: stable central wavelength, narrow bandwidth, and small pulse-energy fluctuation.