Design Considerations for Converting Laser-Accelerated Electron Beams into Brilliant X-Ray, γ-Ray and Neutron-Beams

High-power short-pulse lasers focussed into a gasjet can produce intense brilliant high-energy electron beams. The transport and acceleration of the intense electron beams requires the development of many new concepts in accelerator physics. Focusing these electron beams through an undulator one can realize an X-Free-Electron-Laser (FEL) or a γ-FEL, producing brilliant high-energy photon beams. With these intense monochromatic γ beams high-brilliance, low-energy polarized micro-neutron beams can be generated via resonant (γ,n) reactions. The monochromatic γ beams also open up new fields in nuclear physics. The compact, comparatively cheap laser systems and FEL's allow us to produce brilliant particle beams, which offer interesting facilities 'at home' with many applications