Status, Plans and Recent Results from the APEX Project at LBNL

The commissioning at the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL) of a high-brightness high-repetition rate (MHz-class) photo-gun, based on a normal conducting 186 MHz (VHF-band) RF cavity operating in CW mode, is now completed. The gun has been designed to satisfy the requirements for operating high-repetition rate 4th generation light sources. Test of high quantum efficiency photocathodes with bunches of hundreds pC at MHz repetition rate are now underway. They include, Cs2Te cathodes developed in collaboration with INFNLASA and multialkali antimonides (CsK2Sb), prepared by a collaborating group at LBNL. The present experimental results and the plan for future activities are presented.