Apparatus for Amplifying Microbunching Instabilities of Electrons

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This invention provides an apparatus for amplifying microbunching instabilities in electron beams, which are driven by space-charge effects, to generate powerful and coherent synchrotron radiation in the extreme ultraviolet (EUV) range. The system consists of specially arranged magnets—including sequences of higher-order multipole magnets and groups of dipole magnets—to focus the electron beam and strategically convert energy modulations into density modulations (microbunches). This process enhances the production of EUV synchrotron radiation with high spectral purity and stability, suitable for use as a part of particle accelerators or synchrotron facilities.

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• Generation of intense, coherent EUV and soft X-ray synchrotron radiation for scientific research.
• Operation in free-electron lasers (FELs) for high-brilliance light sources in materials science, chemistry, and biology.
• Support for time-resolved spectroscopy and imaging experiments requiring femtosecond and high repetition rate EUV/XUV pulses.
• Development of compact synchrotron sources with less stringent beam quality requirements.
• Enhancement of advanced microscopy techniques or lithography processes relying on EUV radiation.

BenefitsContent extracted from patent full text and abstract with AI.

• Enables efficient generation of stable, coherent EUV and XUV synchrotron radiation, even at lower electron beam currents and energies.
• Improves spectral purity and temporal (Fourier-limited) characteristics of emitted light pulses, supporting ultrafast scientific studies.
• Reduces technical demands on accelerator beam quality and peak current, allowing more robust and scalable operation.
• Decreases the impact of beam instabilities and destructive effects like coherent synchrotron radiation, enhancing overall source stability.
• Offers a compact and modular system architecture using permanent magnets, contributing to simpler and potentially more cost-effective designs.

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Patent Abstract

The invention relates to an apparatus (1) for amplifying space-charge-driven microbunching instabilities of electrons for producing coherent synchrotron radiation in the extreme ultraviolet wavelength range. Here, the apparatus is provided as a constituent part of an accelerator machine. The apparatus comprises a first arrangement of magnets (10) for beam focusing, said first arrangement of magnets being arranged along a first direction (X). This first arrangement comprises a sequence of at least two multipoles (12) of the second order or higher that are arranged in succession along the first direction (X), wherein one multipole (12) has a focusing embodiment and the other has a defocusing embodiment. The beam cross section (σtra) lies in the first arrangement in the region of (Formula (I)), where λ = wavelength of the microbunching of the electrons and = γ Lorentz factor. The apparatus further comprises a second arrangement of magnets (40) which serve to convert the energy modulations into density modulations. It comprises a sequence of a plurality of groups (22) of dipoles (24) with different polarity that are arranged along the first direction (X), and a multipole (50), at least of second order, which precedes the dipoles. An input beta function is increased by at least a factor of four in the second arrangement.