Inverse compton scattering X-ray source for research, industry and medical applications
Abstract
There is a large performance gap between conventional, electron-impact X-ray sources and synchrotron radiation sources. An Inverse Compton Scattering (ICS) source can bridge this gap by providing a narrow-band, high-flux and tunable Xray source that fits into a laboratory. It works by colliding a high-power laser beam with a relativistic electron beam, in which case the energy of the backscattered photons is in the X-ray (or gamma-ray) regime. Here we present a new conceptual design for an ICS source that is more than two orders of magnitude brighter than the Lyncean Compact Light Source (CLS) currently in user operation. Depending on configuration, this next generation CLS covers an X-ray energy range of about 30-90 keV, or 60-180 keV. It will provide X-ray flux of up to 4 x 1012 photons/s within a beam divergence of 4 mrad and a bandwidth of around 10%. This is well-suited for micro-CT imaging of millimeter-sized samples at micron resolution, with a flux density similar to some high-energy synchrotron beamlines. The beam properties of the new design are also compatible with narrower bandwidth, focused beam applications such as high-energy diffraction. We discuss the novel concepts applied to the design of this X-ray source as well as the resulting beam properties. We present application examples in the areas of imaging, diffraction, and radiotherapy where this system can approach or match the performance of synchrotron beamlines. This will allow transferring many research,…
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