Seminars Archive

Some Thoughts Regarding the History and Physics of FELs

Abstract
It is of some value - even to the current efforts to extend the capabilities of FELs to shorter wavelengths - to consider the operation of these devices within the historical context of the last century\'s efforts to develop high-power coherent radio and microwave sources. When viewed from this perspective, we can better understand the fundamental role that Maxwell\'s equations and boundary conditions have jointly played in our understanding of these devices and the radiation they produce as the technology has progressed from Marconi\'s first spark gap transmitters to the latest SASE X-ray FELs.