First production of X-rays at the ThomX high-intensity Compton source

With the increase in laser power and finesse of optical cavities over the last decade, laboratory-size Compton sources are very promising. These sources produce X-rays through interactions between relativistic electrons and laser photons and, in term of brightness, fall between large synchrotron facilities and classical laboratory X-ray sources. The ThomX source is the French project in this field. This article first presents a state of the art of high-intensity Compton sources, then the ThomX source is briefly described, and the first results are detailed, in particular the production of the first X-rays, the acquisition of the first spectrum and the first image of the beam. Finally, the next objectives are discussed.