Many X-Ray Free-Electron Lasers (X-FELs) have been designed, built and commissioned since the first lasing of the Linac Coherent Light Source in the hard and soft X-ray regions, and great progress has been made in improving their performance and extending their capabilities. Meanwhile, experimental techniques to exploit the unique properties of X-FELs to explore atomic and molecular systems of interest to physics, chemistry, biology and the material sciences have also been developed. As a result, our knowledge of atomic and molecular science has been greatly extended. Nevertheless, there is still much to be accomplished, and the potential for discovery with X-FELs is still largely unexplored. The next generation of scientists will need to be well versed in both particle beams/FEL physics and X-ray photon science. This book presents material from the Enrico Fermi summer school: Physics of and Science with X-Ray Free-Electron Lasers, held at the Enrico Fermi International School of Physics in Varenna, Italy, from 26 June - 1 July 2017. The lectures presented at the school were aimed at introducing graduate students and young scientists to this fast growing and exciting scientific area, and subjects covered include basic accelerator and FEL physics, as well as an introduction to the main research topics in X-FEL-based biology, atomic molecular optical science, material sciences, high-energy density physics and chemistry. Bridging the gap between accelerator/FEL physicists and scientists from other disciplines, the book will be of interest to all those working in the field.

These proceedings present a selection of invited and contributed papers presented during the 18th International Conference on X-Ray Lasers (the 18th ICXRL), held in Shanghai, China, from 17 to 21 July 2023. The conference is part of an ongoing series dedicated to recent developments in the science and technology of X-ray lasers and other coherent X-ray sources, with an additional focus on supporting technologies, instrumentation and applications. The book highlights advances in a wide range of fields including laser and discharge-pumped plasma X-ray lasers, the injection and seeding of X-ray amplifiers, high-order harmonic generation and ultrafast phenomena, X-ray free electron lasers, X-ray and gamma-ray generation, X-ray ghost imaging, optics and metrology, X-rays and γ-rays for fundamental science, the practical implementation of X-ray lasers, XFELs and super-intense lasers, and the applications and industrial uses of X-ray lasers.

This book focuses on the mechanisms of how laser light is produced, guided, and focused for materials processing, and these are explained in an easy-to-understand language for practical use. It emphasizes a basic understanding of the principles necessary to run lasers in a safe and efficient way and provides information for quick access to laser materials processing for laser users. The book exhibits the following features: • Provides simple explanations and descriptions of complex laser material interaction mechanisms to help readers understand relevant effects during laser beam irradiation of materials. • Explains the main high-power laser materials processing methods, giving hints to get started with the processing and how to avoid imperfections. • Focuses on high-power laser applications that are explained in an accessible, descriptive way with practical explanations and minimal formulas. • Teaches how to measure laser beam characteristics and how to install and handle laser equipment correctly. • Gives practical advice on typical equipment arrangements and parameter ranges. This practical handbook serves as a guide for students studying production technologies to learn about laser processes, and for engineers who want to start working with laser processes safely and quickly.