A unique free electron laser (FEL) system, tunable in the far-infrared (FIR) system portion of the electromagnetic spectrum will be acquired from AT&T Bell Laboratories and installed in renovated laboratory space at Rutgers University. The instrument consists of a high current microtron electron accelerator, an electron beamline with quadruple and dipole magnets, a helical undulator electromagnet, ancillary optics, optical devices and high vacuum equipment. Laboratory renovation required for installation of the instrumentation consists primarily of the excavation and masonry of an underground vault for radiation shielding of the FEL and modernization of existing laboratory space for a multidisciplinary research program utilizing the system. The FEL laboratory will be the major scientific research facility of its type in the eastern United States. Research will be conducted in the fields of physics, chemistry, biophysics and materials science. Initial areas for study include linear and nonlinear time resolved FIR spectroscopy , relativistic electron physics, and advanced instrumentation development. Specific experiments planned include the study of superconductors including high Tc materials and Buckyball superconductors, compound semiconductors and devices, DNA and other important biological molecules, and chemical kinetics. Training of undergraduate and graduate students will be included in this facility.
