Measurement of gigawatt radiation pulses from a vacuum and extreme ultraviolet free-electron laser

In order to measure the photon flux of highly intense and extremely pulsed vacuum ultraviolet (VUV) and extreme ultraviolet (EUV) radiation in absolute terms, we have developed a gas-monitor detector which is based on the atomic photoionization of a rare gas at low particle density. The device is indestructible and almost transparent. By first pulse-resolved measurements of VUV free-electron laser radiation at the TESLA test facility in Hamburg, a peak power of more than 100 MW was detected. Moreover, the extended dynamic range of the detector allowed its accurate calibration using spectrally dispersed synchrotron radiation at much lower photon intensities.