Coherent Sources of XUV Radiation: Soft X-Ray Lasers and High-Order Harmonic Generation

Extreme ultraviolet radiation, also referred to as soft X—rays or XUV, offers very special optical properties. The X—UV refractive index of matter is such that normal reflection cannot take place on polished surfaces whereas beam transmission through one micrometer of almost all materials reduces to zero. Therefore, it has long been a difficult task to imagine and to implement devices designed for complex optics experiments in this wavelength range. Thanks to new sources of coherent radiati...