The MEL-X project at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory: a mirror-based delay line for x-rays

Tom Pardini; Randy Hill; Todd Decker; Jennifer Alameda; Regina Soufli; Andy Aquila; Serge Guillet; Sébastien Boutet; Stefan P. Hau-Riege

doi:10.1117/12.2186796

22 September 2015 The MEL-X project at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory: a mirror-based delay line for x-rays

Tom Pardini, Randy Hill, Todd Decker, Jennifer Alameda, Regina Soufli, Andy Aquila, Serge Guillet, Sébastien Boutet, Stefan P. Hau-Riege

Author Affiliations +

Proceedings Volume 9589, X-Ray Lasers and Coherent X-Ray Sources: Development and Applications XI; 95890T (2015) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2186796
Event: SPIE Optical Engineering + Applications, 2015, San Diego, California, United States

Abstract

At the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) in collaboration with the Linac Coherent Light Source (LCLS) we are developing a mirror-based delay line for x-rays (MEL-X) to enable x-ray pump/x-ray probe experiments at Free Electron Lasers (XFELs). The goal of this project is the development and deployment of a proof-of-principle delay line featuring coated x-ray optics. The four-mirror design of the MEL-X is motivated by the need for ease of alignment and use. In order to simplify the overlap of the pump and the probe beam after each delay time change, a scheme involving super-polished rails and mirror-to-motor decoupling has been adopted. The MEL-X, used in combination with a bright pulsed source like LCLS, features a capability for a high intensity pump beam. Its Iridium coating allows it to work at hard x-ray energies all the way up to 9 keV, with a probe beam transmission of 35% up to 8keV, and 14% at 9keV. The delay time can be tailored to each particular experiment, with a nominal range of 70 - 350 fs for this prototype. The MEL-X, combined with established techniques such as x-ray diffraction, absorption or emission, could provide new insights on ultra-fast transitions in highly excited states of matter.

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Tom Pardini, Randy Hill, Todd Decker, Jennifer Alameda, Regina Soufli, Andy Aquila, Serge Guillet, Sébastien Boutet, and Stefan P. Hau-Riege "The MEL-X project at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory: a mirror-based delay line for x-rays", Proc. SPIE 9589, X-Ray Lasers and Coherent X-Ray Sources: Development and Applications XI, 95890T (22 September 2015); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2186796

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