Open AccessFemtosecond electron pulse gating using surface plasmons
Author(s) -
S. E. Irvine,
A. Y. Elezzabi
Publication year - 2006
Publication title -
optics express
Language(s) - Uncategorized
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.394
H-Index - 271
ISSN - 1094-4087
DOI - 10.1364/oe.14.004115
Subject(s) - optics , femtosecond , plasmon , electron , surface plasmon , frequency resolved optical gating , ultrashort pulse , materials science , laser , femtosecond pulse shaping , pulse (music) , physics , quantum mechanics , detector
We present a theoretical investigation of a novel all-optical method for electron beam gating via ponderomotive surface plasmon (SP) interaction. Using femtosecond optical pulses, large electric field gradient SP waves are launched on the surface of a metal film and selectively gate an external electron beam. It is shown that this method can generate electron pulses having similar durations as the laser pulse. The ultrashort electron packets are highly directional and examination of their spatial distribution reveals a large degree of spatial microbunching. Angle-resolved energy spectra of the electrons reveal that their final velocities are highly correlated with exit angle. Furthermore, it is demonstrated that the SP gating technique can be utilized for temporal characterization of ultrashort electron pulses with durations <100 fs.