Electron Beam Transport in Plasma-Accelerator-Driven Free-Electron Lasers in the Presence of Coherent Synchrotron Radiation and Microbunching Instability
Laser- and beam-driven plasma accelerators promise electron beam brightness at the exit
of plasma cells suitable for X-ray free-electron lasers. Beam transport from the accelerator to the
undulator may include a multi-bend, energy-dispersive switchyard, in which energy collimators can
be installed to protect the undulator or to serve multiple photon beamlines. Coherent synchrotron
radiation and microbunching instability in the switchyard can seriously degrade the brightness of
the accelerated beam, reducing the lasing eciency. We present a semi-analytical analysis of those
collective eects for beam parameters expected at the exit of state-of-the-art plasma accelerators.
Prescriptions for the linear optics design used to minimize transverse and longitudinal beam instability
are discussed.