• S. Lederer, S. Schreiber
  DESY, Hamburg
• J.H. Han
  Diamond, Oxfordshire
• M. Hänel, F. Stephan
  DESY Zeuthen, Zeuthen
• P.M. Michelato, L. Monaco, C. Pagani, D. Sertore
  INFN/LASA, Segrate (MI)

Caesium telluride photocathodes are used as laser driven electron sources at FLASH and PITZ. FLASH is operated as user facility as well as for accelerator related studies and therefore has a constant and moderate usage of the cathodes. In contrary, PITZ is an injector R&D facility with a stronger usage of cathodes including gradients in the RF-gun of up to 60 MV/m. In the past, one concern of operating RF-guns with Cs2Te cathodes was the degradation of the quantum efficiency in a few weeks at FLASH and a couple of days at PITZ. Improved vacuum conditions and removing contaminants in both accelerators yielded an increased life time of several months. In this contribution we report on routinely performed QE measurements, investigations on the homogeneity of the electron emission, and dark current issues for both facilities.

• M. Krasilnikov, G. Asova, J.W. Bähr, C.H. Boulware, U. Gensch, H.-J. Grabosch, L. Hakobyan, M. Hänel, Ye. Ivanisenko, M.A. Khojoyan, M. Otevrel, B. Petrosyan, S. Riemann, S. Rimjaem, J. Rönsch-Schulenburg, A. Shapovalov, R. Spesyvtsev, L. Staykov, F. Stephan, G. Vashchenko
  DESY Zeuthen, Zeuthen
• K. Flöttmann, S. Lederer, S. Schreiber
  DESY, Hamburg
• G. Klemz, I. Will
  MBI, Berlin
• D. Richter
  BESSY GmbH, Berlin

The Photo Injector Test facility at DESY, Zeuthen site, (PITZ*) aims to develop and optimize electron sources for frontiers linac based FELs such as FLASH and the European XFEL. A new laser system has been commissioned at PITZ in autumn 2008. It is capable to deliver laser pulses with challenging temporal shape: a flat-top profile with ~20 ps FWHM and rise and fall times of ≤2 ps. This laser system, being a significant step towards the European XFEL photo injector specifications, has been used in a 1.6-cell L-band rf gun with ~60MV/m electric field at the cathode to produce high brightness electron beams. A major part of the PITZ measurement program is the optimizing of the transverse phase space. Recent electron beam measurements at PITZ will be presented.

*for the PITZ team