A. Marinelli

Three dimensional analysis of longitudinal plasma oscillations in a thermal relativistic electron beam

In this paper, we develop a three-dimensional kinetic theory of longitudinal plasma oscillations in a relativistic electron beam. Our analysis includes the effects of betatron motion, finite emittance, and energy spread as well as edge effects due to the finite size of the beam. The consequences of these effects are shown to be of significant interest, as they give rise to several distinct new phenomena. These include an emittance induced anisotropy between backward and forward propagating plasma waves as well as a beatwave effect between plasma and betatron oscillations caused by the coupling of betatron motion to the transverse structure of the charge perturbation. The experimental implications of these new results and their relevance to the beam and radiation physics of advanced light sources, such as free-electron lasers, are also discussed.

Quasicrystalline Beam Formation in RF Photoinjectors

The recent observation of coherent optical transition radiation at the LCLS has raised serious questions concerning the present model of beam dynamics in RF photoinjectors. We present here an analysis of what we term quasicrystalline beam formation. In this scenario, the low longitudinal temperature, in combination with strong acceleration and temporal rearrangement due to bending, allows the longitudinal beam dimension to become more regular, on the microscopic scale of optical wavelengths, than expected from equilibrium statistical properties. This beam distribution then may then display a strong degree of coherence in its optical transition radiation output. We discuss further experimental investigations of this phenomenon.