We present first damage threshold investigations on EUV mirrors and substrate materials using a table-top laser produced plasma source. A Schwarzschild objective with Mo/Si multilayer coatings for the wavelength of 13.5 nm was adapted to the source, generating an EUV spot of 5 microm diameter with a maximum energy density of approximately 6.6 J/cm(2). Single-pulse damage tests were performed on grazing incidence gold mirrors, Mo/Si multilayer mirrors and mirror substrates, respectively. For gold mirrors, a film thickness dependent damage threshold is observed, which can be partially explained by a thermal interaction process. For Mo/Si multilayer mirrors two damage regimes (spot-like, crater) were identified. Fused silica exhibits very smooth ablation craters, indicating a direct photon-induced bond breaking process. Silicon shows the highest damage threshold of all investigated substrate and coating materials. The damage experiments on substrates (fused silica, silicon, CaF(2)) were compared to excimer laser ablation studies at 157 nm.

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The influcence of the pulse duration on the emission characteristics of nearly debris-free laser-induced plasmas in the soft x-ray region (λ ≈ 1-5 nm) was investigated, using six different target gases from a pulsed jet. Compared to ns pulses of the same energy, a ps laser generates a smaller, more strongly ionized plasma, being about 10 times brighter than the ns laser plasma. Moreover, the spectra are considerably shifted towards shorter wavelengths. Electron temperatures and densities of the plasma are obtained by comparing the spectra with model calculations using a magneto-hydrodynamic code.

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We present a table-top soft-x-ray spectrometer for the wavelength range λ = 1-5 nm based on a stable laser-driven x-ray source, making use of a gas-puff target. With this setup, optical light-pump/soft-x-ray probe near-edge x-ray absorption fine structure (NEXAFS) experiments with a temporal resolution of about 230 ps are feasible. Pump-probe NEXAFS measurements were carried out in the "water-window" region (2.28 nm-4.36 nm) on the manganite Pr(0.7)Ca(0.3)MnO(3), investigating diminutive changes of the oxygen K edge that derive from an optically induced phase transition. The results show the practicability of the table-top soft-x-ray spectrometer on demanding investigations so far exclusively conducted at synchrotron radiation sources.