Abstract
The interest in producing ultrashort electron bunches has risen sharply among scientists working on the design of high-gradient wakefield accelerators. One attractive approach generating electron bunches is to illuminate a photocathode with a train of femtosecond laser pulses. In this paper we describe the design and testing of a laser system for an rf gun based on a commercial titanium-sapphire laser technology. The technology allows the production of four femtosecond laser pulses with a continuously variable pulse delay. We also use the designed system to demonstrate the experimental generation of an electron microbunch train obtained by illuminating a cesium-telluride semiconductor photocathode. We use conventional diagnostics to characterize the electron microbunches produced and confirm that it may be possible to control the main parameter of an electron microbunch train.
Original language | English |
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Article number | 103401 |
Journal | Physical Review Accelerators and Beams |
Volume | 20 |
Issue number | 10 |
DOIs | |
Publication status | Published - 4 Oct 2017 |
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Nuclear and High Energy Physics
- Physics and Astronomy (miscellaneous)
- Surfaces and Interfaces