Towards AbloCAM: fundamental approaches to automated ablation-desorption imprinting of focused X-ray laser beams

Abstract
Rigorous spatial characterization of focused laser beams belongs to important components of any laser-matter experiment. Nevertheless, characterization of focused beams brings severe difficulties due to enormous intensities and (sub)micron spot sizes. Methods of ablation and desorption imprints represent an unique way to solve this issue as they exploit the laserinduced damage inevitably occurring at the focus. However, current imprinting methods are ex situ, time-consuming, and require a significant portion of qualified human work making their dissemination to the scientific community uneasy. This led to a definition and initiation of the AbloCAM project - an universal device performing the imprinting techniques automatically on the start-to-end basis. In the proposed project a set of fundamental robust methods is to be developed and experimentally tested which will allow further continuation in the AbloCAM task. We plan to utilize artificial intelligence to substitute the human element currently indispensable for the imprinting methods.