First Electrooptical Detection of Charged Particles

Lazarus, D. M.; Castillo, V.; Kowalski, L.; Kraus, D. E.; Larsen, R.; Magurno, B.; Nikas, D.; Ozben, C.; Semertzidis, Y. K.; Srinivasan-Rao, T.; Tsang, T.

First Electrooptical Detection of Charged Particles

Authors

Description

We have made the first observation of a charged particle beam by means of its electro-optical effect on the polarization of laser light in a birefringent crystal. The modulation of the laser light during the passage of a pulsed electron beam was observed using a fast photodiode and a digital oscilloscope. The fastest rise time measured in a single shot, 120 ps, was limited by the bandwidth of the oscilloscope and the associated electronics. This technology holds promise for detectors of greatly improved spatial and temporal resolution for single relativistic charged particles as well as particle beams.
3 pages, 2 figures. Talk given at the International Europhysics Conference-HEP99, Tampere, Finland, 1999