Design optimization for an X-ray free electron laser driven by SLAC linac

I present a design study for an X-ray Free Electron Laser (FEL) driven by the SLAC linac. The study assumes the FEL is based on Self-Amplified Spontaneous Emission (SASE) and lasing is achieved in a single pass of a high current, high brightness electron beam through a long wiggler. Following a brief review of the fundamentals of SASE, I provide without derivation a collection of formulas relating SASE performance to the system parameters. These formulas allow quick evaluation of FEL designs and provide powerful tools for optimization in multidimensional parameter space. Optimization is carried out for the SLAC FEL over all independent system parameters modeled, subjected to a number of practical constraints.