Hard X‐ray operation of X‐ray gas monitors at the European XFEL

X‐ray gas monitors (XGMs) are operated at the European XFEL for non‐invasive single‐shot pulse energy measurements and average beam‐position monitoring. The underlying measurement principle is the photo‐ionization of rare gas atoms at low gas pressures and the detection of the photo‐ions and photo‐electrons created. These are essential for tuning and sustaining self‐amplified spontaneous emission (SASE) operation, machine radiation safety, and sorting single‐shot experimental data according to pulse energy. In this paper, the first results from XGM operation at photon energies up to 30 keV are presented, which are far beyond the original specification of this device. Here, the Huge Aperture MultiPlier (HAMP) is used for single‐shot pulse energy measurements since the standard X‐ray gas monitor detectors (XGMDs) do not provide a sufficient signal‐to‐noise ratio, even at the highest operating gas pressures. A single‐shot correlation coefficient of 0.98 is measured between consecutive XGMs operated with HAMP, which is as good as measuring with the standard XGMD detectors. An intra‐train non‐linearity of the HAMP signal is discovered, and operation parameters to mitigate this effect are studied. The upper repetition rate limit of HAMP operation at 2.25 MHz is also determined. Finally, the possibilities and limits for future XGM operation at photon energies up to 50 keV are discussed. The operation of X‐ray gas monitors at the European XFEL at hard photon energies up to 30 keV is described, and the possibilities and limitations for future operation up to 50 keV are discussed.