Near-ideal energy modulator for tunable THz pulse generation using sectioned hollow channel plasma system

Abstract

To break the bottleneck in generating high-power tunable coherent THz radiation with a narrow spectral bandwidth, we propose a novel scheme of using a hollow channel plasma to generate energy modulation in relativistic electron beams. Using magnetic optics, the energy modulation is then effectively converted into beam density modulation, forming microbunches with high-quality and very high bunching factors. The arrangement of segmented multistage hollow channels can further improve the bunching factor, thus significantly increasing the THz energy. We show both theoretical analyses and simulations of this scheme, showing that scheme can be realized in accelerator facilities with repetition rates on the order of kHz, providing great potential in revolutionizing science and related technologies.