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The process of inverse Compton scattering, in which an electron of 20–50 MeV backscatters an optical photon into the hard X-ray spectral range, offers the opportunity to produce high-brilliance hard X-ray beams with a laboratory-scale facility. The basic physics of this process is well-understood, and a variety of demonstrations have taken place. Codes exist to determine the spectral performance depending on the detailed characteristics of the electron and laser beams. This talk will briefly review this history and describe the challenges that are presented by the goal of achieving synchrotron-like levels of flux and brilliance. While 3rd generation sources will maintain a significant advantage for the most demanding experiments, the ICS sources offer the potential advantages over synchrotron sources of small, axially symmetric spot size (less than 10 microns) and short pulse duration (less than 1 picosecond). A system could cost less than $10M and have footprint of order 100 square meters or less. Variations of this technology are possible using small storage rings or linacs as the electron source, and employing different laser technologies. Also, depending on the type of application, trade-offs can be made between flexibility and size/cost. We will describe applications to protein crystallography and imaging in both time dependent and static modes.
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