• S. Di Mitri, E. Allaria, R. Appio, L. Badano, D. Castronovo, M. Cornacchia, P. Craievich, S. Ferry, L. Froehlich, S.V. Milton, G. Penco, C. Scafuri, C. Spezzani, M. Trovò, M. Veronese
  ELETTRA, Basovizza
• R. Bartolini
  Diamond, Oxfordshire
• G. De Ninno, S. Spampinati
  University of Nova Gorica, Nova Gorica
• P. Evtushenko
  JLAB, Newport News, Virginia
• W.M. Fawley
  LBNL, Berkeley, California
• L. Giannessi
  ENEA C.R. Frascati, Frascati (Roma)
• A.A. Lutman
  DEEI, Trieste
• M. Sjöström
  MAX-lab, Lund

Some experiences have recently been collected from the FERMI@elettra Free Electron Laser first bunch compressor area. This includes a magnetic compressor, diagnostics for the characterization of the longitudinal and transverse phase space and suitable optics for matching to the downstream part of the linac. We report on the beam dynamics investigations in comparison with the modeling as well as the high level software control that has allowed this experience.

• M. Veronese, R. Appio, T. Borden, G. Ciani, P. Craievich, R. De Monte, S. Di Mitri, M. Ferianis, G. Gaio, S. Grulja, G. Scalamera, M. Tudor
  ELETTRA, Basovizza

Both absolute and relative bunch length measurement are key information for FERMI@Elettra commissioning and operation. In this paper we present the relative Bunch Length Monitor (BLM) system that has been designed and implemented at Sincrotrone Trieste. The first BLM station has been installed downstream the first bunch magnetic compressor (BC1) of FERMI@Elettra. In this paper we report about the first operation of the BLM system; it is based on the power measurement of the coherent radiations. To allow for efficient performances in the extended range of the foreseen bunch lengths for FERMI@Elettra, the system has adopted a pyro detector for coherent edge radiation from the last dipole. Also, the coherent diffraction radiation generated in a ceramic gap located downstream of BC1 is detected by a set of mm-wave diodes. The design of the system, along with its layout, is presented as well as the first measurement results obtained from the FERMI@Elettra compressed bunches.

• P. Craievich, S. Biedron, M. Ferianis, D. La Civita
  ELETTRA, Basovizza
• D. Alesini, L. Palumbo
  INFN/LNF, Frascati (Roma)
• L. Ficcadenti
  Rome University La Sapienza, Roma
• M. Petronio, R. Vescovo
  DEEI, Trieste

A RF deflector is a useful tool to completely characterize the beam phase space by means of measurements of the bunch length and the transverse slice emittance. At FERMI@Elettra, a soft X-ray next-generation light source under development at the Sincrotrone Trieste laboratory in Trieste, Italy, we are installing low-energy and high-energy deflectors. In particular, two deflecting cavities will be positioned at two points in the linac. One will be placed at 1.2 GeV (high energy), just before the FEL process starts; the other at 250 MeV (low energy), after the first bunch compressor (BC1). This paper concerns only the low-energy deflector. The latter was built over the past year in collaboration with the SPARC project team at INFN-LNF-Frascati, Italy and the University of Rome. In this paper we will describe the RF measurements performed to characterize the standing wave cavity before the installation in the FERMI@Elettra linac, and we will compare them with the simulations done using the electromagnetic code HFSS.

• S. Di Mitri, M. Cornacchia, P. Craievich, G. Penco
  ELETTRA, Basovizza
• S. Spampinati
  University of Nova Gorica, Nova Gorica
• M. Venturini, A. Zholents
  LBNL, Berkeley, California

Two machine configurations of the electron beam dynamics in the FERMI@elettra linac have been investigated, namely the one-stage and the two-stage electron bunch compression. One of the merits of the one-stage compression is that of minimizing the impact of the microbunching instability on the slice energy spread and peak current fluctuations at the end of the linac. Special attention is given to the manipulation of the longitudinal phase space, which is strongly influenced by the linac structural wake fields. The electron bunch with a ramping peak current is used in order to obtain, at the end of the linac, an electron bunch characterized by a flat peak current profile and a flat energy distribution. Effects of various jitters on electron bunch energy, arrival time and peak current are compared and relevant tolerances are obtained.

• P. Craievich
  ELETTRA, Basovizza
• M. Dal Forno
  DEEI, Trieste

The cavity Beam Position Monitor (BPM) is a fundamental beam diagnostic instrument for a seeded FEL, like FERMI@Elettra. It allows the measurements of the electron beam trajectory in a non-destructive way and with sub-micron resolution. The high resolution cavity BPM relies on the excitation of the dipole mode that is originated when the bunch passes off axis in the cavity. In this paper we present the prototype of cavity BPM developed for the FERMI@Elettra facility. The RF parameters of the cavities have been determined by means of Ansoft HFSS; while using the CST Particle Studio the level of the output signals from the cavities have been also estimated. Furthermore, the design of the RF frontend for the acquisition and conditioning of the signals from the BPM cavities is presented as well. The prototype has been succesfully installed in the FERMI Linac during the last commissioning phase and preliminary results with the electron beam are also presented.