The conceptual design of a soft x-ray laser at MAX IV

Abstract: In the past six years, a project group of Swedish scientists have been working on the concept of a soft x-ray laser (SXL) at the MAX IV laboratory in Lund, operating in the 1–5 nm wavelength range (0.25–1.2 keV). In 2016, a preliminary science case was compiled after a successful international workshop at AlbaNova, which later on resulted in 27 MSEK funding for a conceptual design report (CDR) that was published in 2021 at https://www.maxiv.lu.se/soft-x-ray-laser/. This summer (June 13-14), we will organize a new international workshop at AlbaNova and gather world-leading scientists in a wide range of scientific disciplines using ultrabright soft x-ray pulses, including AMO, chemistry, condensed matter, life science, novel experimental techniques and theory.

This talk will present the background of the SXL project and the highlights of the CDR. It will also present the user-driven initiative to incorporate SXL in the MAX IV strategy and roadmap, as well as the ongoing effort to produce a state-of-the-art science case for SXL. This will lay the foundation for a funding application to produce a technical design report (TDR) that may eventually lead to construction of Sweden’s first x-ray free-electron laser.