Andreas Przystawik

In this work we present a reflective split-and-delay unit (SDU) developed for interferometric time-resolved experiments utilizing an (extreme ultraviolet) XUV pump–XUV probe scheme with focused free-electron laser beams. The developed SDU overcomes limitations for phase-resolved measurements inherent to conventional two-element split mirrors by a special design using two reflective lamellar gratings. The gratings produce a high-contrast interference signal controlled by the grating displacement in every diffraction order. The orders are separated in the focal plane of the focusing optics, which enables one to avoid phase averaging by spatially selective detection of a single interference state of the two light fields. Interferometry requires a precise relative phase control of the light fields, which presents a challenge at short wavelengths. In our setup the phase delay is determined by an in-vacuum white light interferometer (WLI) that monitors the surface profile of the SDU in real time and thus measures the delay for each laser shot. The precision of the WLI is 1 nm as determined by optical laser interferometry. In the presented experimental geometry it corresponds to a time delay accuracy of 3 as, which enables phase-resolved XUV pump–XUV probe experiments at free-electron laser (FEL) repetition rates up to 60 Hz.

The basic idea is to implement Thomson scattering with free electron laser (FEL) radiation at near-solid density plasmas as a diagnostic method which allows the determination of plasma temperatures and densities in the warm dense matter (WDM) regime (free electron density of n{sub e} = 10{sup 21}-10{sup 26} cm{sup -3} with temperatures of several eV). The WDM regime [1] at near-solid density (n{sub e} = 10{sup 21}-10{sup 22} cm{sup -3}) is of special interest because, it is where the transition from an ideal plasma to a degenerate, strongly coupled plasma occurs. A systematic understanding of this largely unknown WDM domain is crucial for the modeling and understanding of contemporary plasma experiments, like laser shock-wave or Z-pinch experiments as well as for inertial confinement fusion (ICF) experiments as the plasma evolution follows its path through this domain.