Free-electron lasers

Abstract

In the last couple of years, dramatic improvements have been achieved in the power and efficiency of free-electron lasers. Nine devices have now been operated at wavelengths from the millimeter region to the visible part of the spectrum, and several more devices are close to operation. The maturity of the field is reflected in the fact that the first free-electron laser (at Stanford) has now been decommissioned, and relatively new free-electron laser (at UC-Santa Barbara) is now actively engaged in research in solid-state physics.