The propagation of a modulated positron beam in a planar crystal channel is investigated. It is demonstrated that the beam preserves its modulation at sufficiently large penetration depths which opens the prospect of using a crystalline undulator as a coherent source of hard x-rays. This finding is a crucial milestone in developing a new type of lasers radiating in the hard x-ray and gamma-ray range.
Preliminary results of numerical simulations of electron and positron channeling and emission spectra are reported for straight, uniformly bent and periodically bent silicon crystal. The projectile trajectories are computed using the newly developed module [1] of the MBN Explorer package [2,3]. The electron and positron channeling along Si(110) and Si(111) crystallographic planes are studied for the projectile energies 195--855 MeV.
The process of photoproduction of electron-positron pairs in bent single crystals is considered in this paper. In particular, it is shown that the probability of the process for gamma-quanta with energies from 100 GeV on is significantly higher than the one in an amorphous medium. A possible scenario for the experimental validation of the process is discussed and the positive features of the photoproduction in bent crystals compared to straight ones are underlined from the point of view of possible applications.
Planar channeling of 855 MeV electrons and positrons in straight and bent tungsten (110) crystal is simulated by means of the \MBNExplorer software package. The results of simulations for a broad range of bending radii are analyzed in terms of the channel acceptance, dechanneling length, and spectral distribution of the emitted radiation. Comparison of the results with predictions of other theories as well as with the data for (110) oriented diamond, silicon and germanium crystals is carried out.
Channeling and radiation are studied for the relativistic electrons and positrons passing through a Si crystal periodically bent with a small amplitude and a short period. Comprehensive analysis of the channeling process for various bending amplitudes is presented on the grounds of numerical simulations. The features of the channeling are highlighted and elucidated within an analytically developed continuous potential approximation. The radiation spectra are computed and discussed.
We present the results of numerical calculations of the channelling and undulator radiation generated by an ultra-relativistic positron channelling along a crystal plane, which is periodically bent. The bending might be due either to the propagation of a transverse acoustic wave through the crystal, or due to the static strain as it occurs in superlattices. The periodically bent crystal serves as an undulator. We investigate the dependence of the intensities of both the ordinary channelling and the undulator radiations on the parameters of the periodically bent channel with simultaneous accoun…
We investigate, both analytically and numerically, the influence of the dechanneling process on the parameters of undulator radiation generated by ultra-relativistic positron channelling along a crystal plane, which is periodically bent. The bending might be due either to the propagation of a transverse acoustic wave through the crystal, or due to the static strain as it occurs in superlattices. In either case the periodically bent crystal serves as an undulator which allows to generate X-ray and gamma-radiation. We propose the scheme for accurate quantitative treatment of the radiation in pre…
A periodically bent Si crystal is shown to efficiently serve for producing highly monochromatic radiation in a gamma-ray energy spectral range. A short-period small-amplitude bending yields narrow undulator-type spectral peaks in radiation from multi-GeV electrons and positrons channeling through the crystal. Benchmark theoretical results on the undulator are obtained by simulations of the channeling with a full atomistic approach to the projectile-crystal interactions over the macroscopic propagation distances. The simulations are facilitated by employing the MBN Explorer package for molecula…
The evolution of a modulated positron beam in a planar crystal channel is investigated within the diffusion approach. A detailed description of the formalism is given. A new parameter, the demodulation length, is introduced, representing the quantitative measure of the depth at which the channelling beam preserves its modulation in the crystal. It is demonstrated that there exist crystal channels with the demodulation length sufficiently large for using the crystalline undulator as a coherent source of hard X rays. This finding is a crucial milestone in developing a new type of lasers radiatin…
In this paper we present the results of a systematic numerical analysis of the channeling properties of electrons and positrons in oriented straight and periodically bent diamond(110) crystals. We analyse dependence of the intensity of the radiation emitted on the projectile energy as well as on the bending amplitude. The analysis presented is based on the grounds of accurate numerical simulations of the channeling process. The simulation parameters, such as the crystal orientation, thickness and bending parameters of the crystals as well as the energy of the projectiles, were chosen to match …
The electromagnetic radiation generated by ultra-relativistic positrons channelling in a crystalline undulator is discussed. The crystalline undulator is a crystal whose planes are bent periodically with the amplitude much larger than the interplanar spacing. Various conditions and criteria to be fulfilled for the crystalline undulator operation are established. Different methods of the crystal bending are described. We present the results of numeric calculations of spectral distributions of the spontaneous radiation emitted in the crystalline undulator and discuss the possibility to create th…
We discuss the radiation generated by positrons channeling in a crystalline undulator. The undulator is produced by periodically bending a single crystal with an amplitude much larger than the interplanar spacing. Different approaches for bending the crystal are described and the restrictions on the parameters of the bending are discussed. We also present numeric calculations of the spontaneous emitted radiation and estimate the conditions for stimulated emission. Our investigations show that the proposed mechanism could be an interesting source for high energy photons and is worth to be studi…
We predict peculiar changes in spectral distributions of radiation emitted by ultra-relativistic positrons and electrons in periodically bent crystals with variation of the bending amplitude. It is shown that the changes, being sensitive to the projectile energy, manifest themselves differently for negatively and positively charged projectiles. We demonstrate that the features observed are due to the interplay of different radiation mechanisms occurring in periodically bent crystals. The observations are important for design, practical realization and channeling experiments with periodically b…
We analyze numerically the radiation and channeling properties of ultrarelativistic electrons and positrons propagating through a periodically bent diamond crystal grown on a straight single-crystal diamond substrate. Such systems can be called hetero-crystals and they are one of the experimentally realized samples for the implementation of crystalline undulators. We state that in such systems the channeling and radiation properties of projectiles are sensitive to the projectile particles energy as well as on the beam propagation direction, i.e. on whether the beam of particles enters the crys…
New type of radiation in crystals is predicted and investigated in computer simulation. It is shown that process of volume reflection of electrons and positrons in bent crystals is accomplished with high-power radiation of photons. Volume reflection radiation has intensity comparable with known channeling radiation, but it is less sensitive to entrance angle and sign of charge of a particle. Simulated spectra of radiation power are presented for 10 GeV and 200GeV particles.
The idea of using fixed-target annihilations of a high-energy positron beam on a target for producing a new, very feebly interacting particle has been exploited by the PADME experiment at LNF using the extracted beam from the LINAC in the BTF facility. Extracting the beam from a synchrotron would improve by several orders of magnitude the duty-cycle of the LINAC, thus greatly extending the physics reach of such experiments. The option of substituting or complementing the standard, slow 1/3 of integer resonant extraction technique by using coherent phenomena in a bent crystal, like the channeli…
An investigation on stochastic deflection of high-energy charged particles in a bent crystal was carried out. In particular, we investigated the deflection efficiency under axial confinement of both positively and negatively charged particles as a function of the crystal orientation, the choice of the bending plane, and of the charge sign. Analytic estimations and numerical simulations were compared with dedicated experiments at the H4 secondary beam line of SPS North Area, with 120 GeV/$c$ electrons and positrons. In the work presented in this article, the optimal orientations of the plane of…
We discuss radiation generated by positrons channeling in a crystalline undulator. The undulator is produced by periodically bending a single crystal with an amplitude much larger than the interplanar spacing. Different approaches for bending the crystal are described and the restrictions on the parameters of the bending are established. We present the results of numeric calculations of the spectral distributions of the spontaneous emitted radiation and estimate the conditions for stimulated emission. Our investigations show that the proposed mechanism provides an efficient source for high ene…
The volume coherent deflection of high-energy positive and negative particles in uniformly bent crystals is studied. The general analysis of potential scattering shows that the standard screening potential for a large class of collisions can cause the volume refraction for negative particles (antiprotons, electrons) instead of the volume reflection for positive particles (proton, positrons).
Simulations of electron and positron channelling in a crystalline undulator with a small amplitude and a short period (A Kostyuk, Phys. Rev. Lett. 110 (2013) 115503) were repeated by V G Bezchastnov, A V Korol and A V Solov'yov (J. Phys. B: At. Mol. Opt. Phys. 47 (2014) 195401)for the same parameter set but using another computer code, MBN Explorer, which implements a different model of projectile scattering by crystal atoms. The authors of the latter paper claim that their approach, in contrast to the one of the former paper, allows them to observe short-period undulator oscillations in plots…
The feasibility of gamma-ray light sources based on the channeling phenomenon of ultrarelativistic electrons and positrons in oriented crystals that are periodically bent with Small Amplitude and Short Period (SASP) is demonstrated by means of rigorous numerical modelling that accounts for the interaction of a projectile with all atoms of the crystalline environment. Numerical data on the spectral distribution, brilliance, number of photons and power of radiation emitted by 10 GeV electron and positron beams passing through diamond, silicon and germanium crystals are presented and analyzed. Th…
This paper discusses the undulator radiation emitted by high-energy positrons during planar channeling in periodically bent crystals. We demonstrate that the construction of the undulator for positrons with energies of 10 GeV and above is only possible if one takes into account the radiative energy losses. The frequency of the undulator radiation depends on the energy of the particle. Thus the decrease of the particle's energy during the passage of the crystal should result in the destruction of the undulator radiation regime. However, we demonstrate that it is possible to avoid the destructiv…
Incoherent bremsstrahlung by high-energy particles in crystal is due to the thermal spread of atoms in relation to their equilibrium positions in the lattice. The simulation procedure developed earlier for the incoherent radiation is applied to the case of the electrons and positrons motion in the sinusoidally bent crystal. The results of simulation are in agreement with the data of recent experiments carried out at the Mainz Microtron MAMI. The possibility of use of the sinusoidally bent crystals as undulators is discussed.
This paper discusses the undulator radiation emitted by high-energy positrons during planar channeling in periodically bent crystals. We demonstrate that the construction of the undulator for positrons with energies of 10 GeV and above is only possible if one takes into account the radiative energy losses. The frequency of the undulator radiation depends on the energy of the particle. Thus the decrease of the particle's energy during the passage of the crystal should result in the destruction of the undulator radiation regime. However, we demonstrate that it is possible to avoid the destructiv…
A design study has been performed for a positron beam with an energy of 500 MeV to be realized at the applied physics area of the Mainz Microtron MAMI. Positrons will be created after pair conversion of bremsstrahlung, produced by the 855 MeV electron beam af MAMI in a tungsten converter target. From the two conceivable geometries (i) pair conversion in the bremsstrahlung converter target itself, and (ii) bremsstrahlung pair conversion in a separated lead foil, the former was considered in detail. Positrons will be energy selected within an outside open electron beam-line bending magnet, and b…
The SHERPA project aim is to develop an efficient technique to extract a positron beam from one of the accelerator rings composing the DAFNE complex at the Frascati National Laboratory of INFN, setting up a new beam line able to deliver positron spills of O(ms) length, excellent beam energy spread and emittance. The most common approach to slowly extract from a ring is to increase betatron oscillations approaching a tune resonance in order to gradually eject particles from the circulating beam. SHERPA proposes a paradigm change using coherent processes in bent crystals to kick out positrons fr…
The usage of a Crystalline Undulator (CU) has been identified as a promising solution for generating powerful and monochromatic $γ$-rays. A CU was fabricated at SSL through the grooving method, i.e., by the manufacturing of a series of periodical grooves on the major surfaces of a crystal. The CU was extensively characterized both morphologically via optical interferometry at SSL and structurally via X-ray diffraction at ESRF. Then, it was finally tested for channeling with a 400 GeV/c proton beam at CERN. The experimental results were compared to Monte Carlo simulations. Evidence of planar ch…
The results of numerical simulation of the channeling of ultra-relativistic 270 MeV electrons and positrons in a diamond crystal are presented. Using the MBN Explorer package, the trajectories of the have been determined of the particles incident on a 20 microns thick crystal along (110) crystallographic plane. The channeling parameters and radiation spectra of electrons and positrons have been computed for the cases of straight and periodically bent diamond crystals.
The crystalline undulator is a single crystal with periodically bent crystallographic planes. If ultrarelativistic charged particles channel through such a crystal, they emit hard radiation of undulator type. A crystalline undulator with a bending amplitude smaller than the distance between the bent planes and a bending period shorter than the period of channeling oscillations is proposed. Heretofore, it was believed that such a range of bending parameters was unsuitable for a crystalline undulator. This point of view is refuted. In fact, the undulator with a small amplitude and a short period…
If an ultrarelativistic charged particle channels inside a single crystal with periodically bent crystallographic planes, it emits hard electromagnetic radiation of the undulator type. Due to similarity of its physical principles to the ordinary (magnetic) undulator, such a device is termed as the crystalline undulator. Recent development of a new Monte Carlo code ChaS made possible a detailed simulation of particle channeling and radiation emission in periodically bent crystals. According to recent findings, energy of the electron beam below 1 GeV is sufficient to observe the undulator effect…
We discuss design and practical realization of novel gamma-ray Crystal-based Light Sources (CLS) that can be constructed through exposure of oriented crystals (linear, bent, periodically bent) to beams of ultrarelativistic charged particles. In an exemplary case study, we estimate brilliance of radiation emitted in a Crystalline Undulator (CU) LS by available positron beams. Intensity of CU radiation in the photon energy range $10^0-10^1$ MeV, which is inaccessible to conventional synchrotrons, undulators and XFELs, greatly exceeds that of laser-Compton scattering LSs and can be higher than pr…
A proof-of-principle experimental setup for the extraction of 6 GeV electrons from the DESY II Booster Synchrotron using the channeling effect in a bent crystal is elaborated. Various aspects of the experimental setup were investigated in detail, such as the particle beam dynamics during the extraction process, the manufacturing and characterization of bent crystals, and the detection of the extracted beam. In order to optimize the crystal geometry, the overall process of beam extraction was simulated, taking into account the influence of radiation energy losses. As result it is concluded that…
