Key Points
- Scientists have made a major step toward creating smaller, more affordable X-ray free-electron lasers (XFELs).
- The breakthrough uses a new technology called a laser plasma accelerator (LPA).
- LPAs can accelerate electrons over 1,000 times faster than traditional methods, shrinking a kilometer-long machine down to a few meters.
- The new research proves that LPAs can produce the high-quality, stable electron beams needed to power an XFEL.
Scientists at Lawrence Berkeley National Lab have made a breakthrough that could lead to smaller, more affordable X-ray free-electron lasers (XFELs). These powerful machines are used to study nature at the atomic level, leading to advances in medicine, biology, and physics. But they are typically massive and expensive, limiting their use to a few large research facilities.
The new research focuses on shrinking these powerful tools down by using a new type of technology called a laser plasma accelerator (LPA). Instead of using a kilometer-long traditional accelerator, LPAs use a laser to create a wave in a plasma gas. This wave can accelerate electrons over 1,000 times faster, meaning the same power can be achieved in a space of just a few meters.
In a new study, published in APS Physical Review Letters, the Berkeley Lab team demonstrated that they can use this LPA technology to produce the high-quality, stable electron beams needed to make an XFEL work. This is a critical step toward building compact XFELs that could one day fit on a tabletop.
Making these powerful tools smaller and cheaper would be a game-changer for science. It would enable many more labs and universities to access X-ray lasers, significantly expanding research into a wide range of topics, from complex proteins to advanced materials for new computer chips. The technology could also be used to upgrade existing XFELs, making them even more powerful.
