Amplified X-ray laser pulses achieved using mirror set-up

Current X-ray lasers require facilities that are kilometres long. A cavity-based set-up about 66 metres in length has been developed that uses highly reflective mirrors to enable the generation of high-intensity pulses of narrow-band X-ray radiation. This promises to overcome the limitations of current X-ray lasers. Sharp and coherent X-ray pulses are produced with an optical cavity in an accelerator environment.