• J.K. Sekutowicz, M. Ebert, F. Mittag
  DESY, Hamburg
• P. Kneisel
  JLAB, Newport News, Virginia
• R. Nietubyc
  The Andrzej Soltan Institute for Nuclear Studies, Centre Swierk, Swierk/Otwock

The European XFEL will use superconducting TESLA cavities operating with 650 μs long bunch trains. With 220 ns bunch spacing and 10 Hz RF-pulse repetition rate up to 27000 high quality bunches/s will be delivered to insertion devices generating unprecedented high average brilliance photon beams at very short wavelength. While many experiments can take advantage of full bunch trains, others prefer an increased several μ-seconds intra pulse distance between bunches, or short bursts with kHz repetition rate. With the nominal RF-pulse structure these features will lead to a substantially reduced number of bunches per second and therefore to significantly lower average brilliance. We discuss here an R&D program aiming for a far future upgrade of the European XFEL; operation in the cw and/or near-cw mode. The program profits from the continuous improvement in performance of TESLA cavities, which allows for longer RF-pulses in comparison with the current design. We present test results of a SRF electron injector and a new RF-power source, and some modification of the HOM damping scheme, which will avoid the necessity of re-assembly of the XFEL accelerator for the upgraded operations.

• A. Neumann, W. Anders, M. Dirsat, A. Frahm, A. Jankowiak, T. Kamps, J. Knobloch, O. Kugeler, T. Quast, J. Rudolph, M. Schenk, M. Schuster
  HZB, Berlin
• P. Kneisel
  JLAB, Newport News, Virginia
• R. Nietubyc
  The Andrzej Soltan Institute for Nuclear Studies, Centre Swierk, Swierk/Otwock
• T. Rao, J. Smedley
  BNL, Upton, Long Island, New York
• J.K. Sekutowicz
  DESY, Hamburg
• I. Will
  MBI, Berlin

ERLs have the powerful potential to provide very high current beams with exceptional and tailored parameters for many applications, from next-generation light sources to electron coolers. However, the demands placed on the electron source are severe. It must operate CW, generating a current of 100 mA or more with a normalized emittance of order 1 μm rad. Beyond these requirements, issues such as dark current and long-term reliability are critical to the success of ERL facilities. As part of the BERLinPro project, Helmholtz Zentrum Berlin (HZB) is developing a CW SRF photoinjector in three stages, the first of which is currently being installed at HZB's HoBiCaT facility. It consists of an SRF-cavity with a Pb cathode and a superconducting solenoid. Subsequent development stages include the integration of a high-quantum-efficiency cathode and RF components for high-current operation. This paper discusses the HZB roadmap towards an ERL-suitable SRF photoinjector, the present status of the facility and first cavity tests.