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The Novosibirsk FEL facility has three FELs installed on the first, second, and fourth orbits of the multiturn energy recovery linac (ERL). The first FEL covers the 90–240 μm range of wavelengths at an average radiation power of 0.5 kW with a pulse repetition rate of 5.6 or 11.2 MHz and a peak power of 1 MW. The second FEL operates in the 40–80 μm range of wavelengths at an average radiation power of 0.5 kW with a pulse-repetition rate of 7.5 MHz and a peak power of around 1 MW. These two FELs are the world’s most powerful (in terms of average power) sources of coherent narrow-band (less than 1%) radiation in their wavelength ranges. The third FEL was commissioned in 2015 to cover the 5–20 μm range of wavelengths. The Novosibirsk ERL is the world’s first and only multiturn ERL. Its distinctive features include a normally-conductive 180 MHz accelerating system, a direct current (DC) electrostatic electron gun with a control grid and thermionic cathode, three operating modes of the magnetic system, and a compact (6 × 40 m) design. The Novosibirsk FEL facility has been in operation for users of terahertz radiation since 2004.

The development of the permanent-magnet variable-period undulator (VPU) is aimed at improving the parameters of the Novosibirsk free electron laser (FEL). The key features of this design are the possibility of increasing the number of poles for shorter periods with constant undulator length and wider radiation wavelength tuning range as compared with conventional undulators. As the idea of the permanent-magnet VPU has not been properly tested yet, there are several issues to be solved before THE manufacture of the device. Two short prototypes of the VPU were made for the purpose of testing solutions to existing problems. We present here the results of mechanical and magnetic measurements of the undulator prototypes and compare the characteristics of the prototypes with those predicted by simulations.

Novosibirsk FEL facility is based on the first in the world multi-turn energy recovery linac (ERL). It comprises three FELs (stages). FELs on the first and the second tracks were commissioned in 2004 and 2009 respectively and operate for users now. The third stage FEL is installed on the fourth track of the ERL. It includes three undulator sections and 40-meters-long optical cavity. The design tuning range of this FEL is from 5 to 20 microns and the design average power at bunch repetition rate 3.74 MHz is about 1 kW. Recent results of the third stage FEL commissioning are reported.

According to leading producers of microelectronic devices, lithography based on free electron lasers (FEL) could become the main technology for the mass production of elements with a scale up to 5 nm in the near future. One of the main hindrances in this path is the absence of working FEL with the required parameters. A feasibility study devoted to the production of such an FEL based on a superconducting energyrecovery linac (ERL) has been carried out at the Budker Institute of Nuclear Physics (BINP). The ERL average current is limited by longitudinal and transverse instabilities, caused by the interaction of an electron beam with the fields induced by it in the superconducting cavities. The estimations of the threshold currents and parameters of the ERL required for the operation of FEL are obtained.

To improve the parameters of the second stage Novosibirsk free electron laser we plan to replace the existing electromagnetic undulator by permanent-magnet variable-period undulator (VPU). The VPUs have several advantages compared to conventional undulators, which include wider radiation wavelength tuning range and an option to increase the number of poles. Both these advantages will be realized in the new undulator under development in Budker INP. There are some technical problems, which have to be solved before this idea can be implemented in practice. To check the solution of these problems we designed and manufactured a small undulator prototype, which has just several periods. In this paper, the results of mechanical and magnetic measurements of this undulator prototype are presented and compared with simulations.

The high-power free electron laser (FEL) facility NovoFEL has been created at Budker INP. Its wavelength can be tuned over a wide range in terahertz and infrared spectrum regions. This FEL uses a multi-turn energy recovery linac with five straight sections as a source of electron beam. Three sections are used for three FELs which operate in different wavelength ranges (the first at 90-240 μm; the second at 37 – 80 μm; the third at 5 – 20 μm). The first and second FELs were commissioned in 2003 and 2009, respectively. They operate for users now. The third FEL is installed on the fourth accelerator track, which is the last one; the electron energy is maximal here. This FEL comprises three undulator sections and a 40-m optical cavity. The first lasing of this FEL was obtained in the summer of 2015. The radiation wavelength was 9 μm and the average power was about 100 W. Radiation of the third FEL was delivered to the user stations, and the first user shifts were performed recently. The results of the commissioning of the third FEL, the current status of the first and second FELs and future development prospects are presented.

Novosibirsk free electron laser (FEL) facility contains three FELs operating in the wavelength range 8–240 micron at average power up to 0.5 kW and peak power about 1 MW. Radiation users works at 6 user stations performing biological, chemical, physical and medical research.