Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory

A high-performance superconducting undulator concept, incorporating stacked YBa2Cu3O7δ (YBCO) tapes operating at 4.2 K, is currently under investigation at LBNL as one of many technology options for future FEL applications. The concept is particularly promising for narrow-gap, short period (<10 mm) regimes, where traditional superconducting and permanent magnet technologies are less-suited. The current path is dictated by etching the YBCO layer using lithography techniques, resulting in a high degree of uniformity from tape to tape as well as a straightforward and highly cost-effective means of production. We describe the approaches being pursued for the tape preparation and the conceptual design of a device. We also provide an initial analysis of the impact of fabrication tolerances in terms of field errors for FEL application. © 2011 IEEE.