03.12.19 - Kirsten Schnorr "Maloja endstation for atomic, molecular and non-linear science at SwissFEL"

Maloja endstation for atomic, molecular and non-linear science at SwissFEL

A new endstation for atomic, molecular and non-linear (AMO) science, Maloja, is currently built at the upcoming soft X-ray branch Athos of the Swiss Free-Electron Laser (FEL) SwissFEL. The Athos undulator section has small chicanes in between every undulator segment and tuneable undulators, enabling novel and advanced FEL operation modes. Specifically, a mode to generate ultrashort pulses from a few femtoseconds down to hundreds of attoseconds, high-power operation with up to 8 mJ pulse energy, two-color X-ray pump-probe, or the combination of these schemes will be available. Exploiting these capabilities opens new exciting opportunities for the field of AMO science. For instance, charge transfer and migration in molecules shall be investigated on the few-femtosecond time scale with site-selectivity employing X-ray pump-probe schemes with pulses tuned to specific absorption edges. With a photon-energy range from 250 to 1800 eV, Athos covers essential absorption K-edges, such as C, N and O as well as L-edges of 3d transition metal elements, like Ti, Mn, Fe, and Cu to allow for a broad spectrum of targets. In addition, a synchronized optical pump-probe laser, which is intended to cover the wavelength regime from THz to UV radiation using secondary sources, will be available to study optical light initiated dynamics. The Maloja endstation will allow the investigation of a variety of targets ranging from gas-phase atoms, molecules and clusters to aerosols and liquids, which requires a large degree of flexibility. A set of vacuum chambers compatible with the foreseen sample environments will be available and can be combined with one or multiple detection techniques: electron- and ion-spectroscopy, absorption and emission spectroscopy and X-ray scattering.