Free-Space Optical Modulation of Free Electrons in the Continuous-Wave Regime

Fuente: arXiv
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Auteurs principaux: Velasco, Cruz I., de Abajo, F. Javier García
Format: Preprint
Publié: 2024
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author Velasco, Cruz I.
de Abajo, F. Javier García
author_facet Velasco, Cruz I.
de Abajo, F. Javier García
contents The coherent interaction between free electrons and optical fields can produce free-electron compression and push the temporal resolution of ultrafast electron microscopy to the attosecond regime. However, a large electron-light interaction is required to attain a strong compression, generally necessitating short light and electron pulses combined with optical scattering at nanostructures. Here, we theoretically investigate an alternative configuration based on stimulated Compton scattering, whereby two counterpropagating Gaussian light beams induce energy jumps in a colinear electron beam by multiples of their photon-energy difference. Strong recoil effects are produced by extending the electron-light interaction over millimetric distances, enabling a dramatic increase in temporal compression and substantially reshaping the electron spectra for affordable laser powers. Beyond its fundamental interest, our work introduces a practical scheme to achieve a large temporal compression of continuous electron beams without involving optical scattering by material structures.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2412_03410
institution arXiv
publishDate 2024
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle Free-Space Optical Modulation of Free Electrons in the Continuous-Wave Regime
Velasco, Cruz I.
de Abajo, F. Javier García
Quantum Physics
The coherent interaction between free electrons and optical fields can produce free-electron compression and push the temporal resolution of ultrafast electron microscopy to the attosecond regime. However, a large electron-light interaction is required to attain a strong compression, generally necessitating short light and electron pulses combined with optical scattering at nanostructures. Here, we theoretically investigate an alternative configuration based on stimulated Compton scattering, whereby two counterpropagating Gaussian light beams induce energy jumps in a colinear electron beam by multiples of their photon-energy difference. Strong recoil effects are produced by extending the electron-light interaction over millimetric distances, enabling a dramatic increase in temporal compression and substantially reshaping the electron spectra for affordable laser powers. Beyond its fundamental interest, our work introduces a practical scheme to achieve a large temporal compression of continuous electron beams without involving optical scattering by material structures.
title Free-Space Optical Modulation of Free Electrons in the Continuous-Wave Regime
topic Quantum Physics
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2412.03410