Second-order autocorrelation of XUV FEL pulses via time resolved two-photon single ionization of He

Second-order autocorrelation spectra of XUV free-electron laser pulses from the Spring-8 Compact SASE Source (SCSS) have been recorded by time and momentum resolved detection of two-photon single ionization of He at 20.45 eV using a split-mirror delay-stage in combination with high-resolution recoil-ion momentum spectroscopy (COLTRIMS). From the autocorrelation trace we extract a coherence time of 8 +/- 2 fs and a mean pulse duration of 28 +/- 5 fs, much shorter than estimations based on electron bunch-length measurements. Simulations within the partial coherence model [Opt. Lett. 35, 3441 (2010)] are in agreement with experiment if a pulse-front tilt across the FEL beam diameter is taken into account that leads to a temporal shift of about 6 fs between both pulse replicas. (C) 2011 Optical Society of America