Abstract
We present a novel method for measurement of ultrashort electron-bunch duration, in principle, as short as zeptosecond (). The method employs nonlinear Thomson scattering of relativistically intense laser light, and takes advantage of the nonlinear dependence and coherence of scattered light on electron bunch length. We validate the method and test its range of applicability via simulations by using realistic (nonideal) electron beams. Due to the wide flexibility in choice of interaction geometry and scattering laser pulse properties enabled by the method, it is shown to be applicable over a wide range of electron beam parameters, including energy, energy spread, and divergence angle.
- Received 3 March 2020
- Accepted 5 June 2020
DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevAccelBeams.23.072802
Published by the American Physical Society under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International license. Further distribution of this work must maintain attribution to the author(s) and the published article’s title, journal citation, and DOI.
Published by the American Physical Society