Aligning beamlines at synchrotron light sources is a high-dimensional, expensive-to-sample optimization problem, as beams are focused using a series of dynamic optical components. Bayesian Optimization is an efficient machine learning approach to finding global optima of beam quality, but the model can easily be impaired by faulty data points caused by the beam going off the edge of the sensor or by background noise. This study, conducted at the National Synchrotron Light Source II (NSLS-II) facility at Brookhaven National Laboratory (BNL), is an investigation of methods to identify untrustworthy readings of beam quality and discourage the optimization model from seeking out points likely to yield low-fidelity beams. The approaches explored include dynamic pruning using loss analysis of size and position models and a lengthscale-based genetic algorithm to determine which points to include in the model for optimal fit. Each method successfully classified high and low fidelity points. This research advances BNL's mission to tackle our nation's energy challenges by providing scientists at all beamlines with access to higher quality beams, and faster convergence to these optima for their experiments.

In the original "Austin Powers" film, the character Dr. Evil asked for "sharks with frickin' laser beams attached to their heads" in order to kill Austin Powers. While this scene is ridiculous and funny, the concept of using "laser beams" as a weapon is not new. However, with the rise in technology of robotics and AI, The Drive reports that the US government has been working on the'weapons of the future', which seem to be energy-directed weapons such as laser beams. All the microelectronics and iPhones and so forth, were starting to be drilled and the touch screens were being scribed, and all this whole industrial space opened up, and the reason was that these fiber lasers were very efficient at converting electrical power to optical power. The beam quality that came out of the fiber-laser, meaning the ability for that beam to be focusable, to provide a high-intensity spot to do things, like melt metal and drill holes, the beam quality was very high.