Broadband multilayer optics for ultrafast EUV absorption spectroscopy with free electron laser radiation

The growing interest in the study of the extreme ultraviolet (EUV) radiation-matter interaction is feeding up the development of new technologies able to overcame some current technological limits. Adaptive optics is an established technology already widely used for wavefront correction in many applications such as astronomical telescopes, laser communications, high power laser systems, microscopy and high resolution imaging systems. Although this technology is already exploited in the EUV and X-ray range, its usage is only feasible in systems with a grazing incidence configuration. On the other hand, the development of a EUV normal incidence adaptive optics can open new interesting possibilities in many different fields ranging from free electron laser and synchrotron applications up to EUV photolithography. In this work we report the preliminary results achieved in the developing of a normal incidence EUV multilayered adaptive mirror tuned at 30.4nm. The proper functioning and potential applications of such device have been demonstrated by using a High order Harmonics Generation (HHG) source.