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abstract:
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The drive to create and measure ultra-short pulses in the x-ray regime advances the ongoing development of free electron lasers (FEL). Several proposed schemes, to shorten the pulse length of the radiation, involve driving the FEL with a chirped (linear longitudinal phase space correlation) electron beam in the self amplified spontaneous emission (SASE) mode. This dissertation examines the experiments conducted under such conditions, canvassing analytical and numerical studies of beam dynamics and radiation properties, experimental observations, and descriptions of the development of novel diagnostics. The VISA (Visible-Infrared SASE Amplifier) program has achieved saturation at 840 nm within a 4 m long undulator. A novel bunch compression mechanism during transport was discovered and ultimately responsible for the high peak current required to drive the FEL. Start-to-end simulations, detailing the dynamics from electron beam inception at the photocathode to the FEL radiation properties at the undulator, were successfully benchmarked to observable data.
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