Gas detectors for x-ray lasers

• DOI: 10.1063/1.2913328
• Publication Date: 2008-05-08T22:44:29Z
• Authors: K. Tiedtke; J. Feldhaus; U. Hahn; U. Jastrow; T. Nunez; T. Tschentscher; S. V. Bobashev; A. A. Sorokin; J. B. Hastings; S. Möller; L. Cibik; A. Gottwald; A. Hoehl; U. Kroth; M. Krumrey; H. Schöppe; G. Ulm; M. Richter
• Keywords: 0103 physical sciences; info:eu-repo/classification/ddc/530; 7. Clean energy; 01 natural sciences

We have developed different types of photodetectors that are based on the photoionization of a gas at a low target density. The almost transparent devices were optimized and tested for online photon diagnostics at current and future x-ray free-electron laser facilities on a shot-to-shot basis with a temporal resolution of better than 100 ns. Characterization and calibration measurements were performed in the laboratory of the Physikalisch-Technische Bundesanstalt at the electron storage ring BESSY II in Berlin. As a result, measurement uncertainties of better than 10% for the photon-pulse energy and below 20 μm for the photon-beam position were achieved at the Free-electron LASer in Hamburg (FLASH). An upgrade for the detection of hard x-rays was tested at the Sub-Picosecond Photon Source in Stanford.