LCLS UNDULATOR COMMISSIONING, ALIGNMENT, AND PERFORMANCE*

The LCLS x-ray FEL has recently achieved its 1.5-Angstrom lasing and saturation goals upon first trial. This was achieved as a result of a thorough pre-beam checkout, both traditional and beam-based component alignment techniques, and high electron beam brightness. The x-ray FEL process demands very tight tolerances on the straightness of the electron beam trajectory (<5 {micro}m) through the LCLS undulator system. Tight, but less stringent tolerances of {approx}100 {micro}m rms were met for the transverse placement of the individual undulator segments with respect to the beam axis. The tolerances for electron beam straightness can only be met through a beam-based alignment (BBA) method, which is implemented using large electron energy variations and sub-micron resolution cavity beam position monitors (BPM), with precise conventional alignment used to set the starting conditions. Precision-fiducialization of components mounted on remotely adjustable girders, and special beam-finder wires (BFW) at each girder have been used to meet these challenging alignment tolerances. Longer-term girder movement due to ground motion and temperature changes are being monitored, continuously, by a unique stretched wire and hydrostatic level Alignment Diagnostics System (ADS).