THE FERMI SEEDED FEL FACILITY: OPERATIONAL EXPERIENCE AND FUTURE PERSPECTIVES

FERMI is the seeded FEL user facility in Trieste, Italy, producing photons from the VUV to the soft X-rays with a high degreeof coherenceand spectral stability. Both FEL lines, FEL-1 and FEL-2, are now available for users, down to the shortest wavelength of 4 nm. We will report on the completion of the commissioning of the high energy FEL line, FEL-2, and on the operational experience for users, in particular those requiring specific FEL configurations, like two-colour experiments. We will also give a perspective on the improvements and upgrades which have been triggered by our experience and are aiming to maintain as well as to constantly improve the performance of the facility for our user community.