Self accelerating electron Airy beams

TL;DR

This paper reports the first experimental creation of free electron Airy beams, demonstrating their self-accelerating, shape-preserving, and self-healing properties, which could enable advanced electron steering and interferometry.

Contribution

It introduces a novel method to generate electron Airy beams using nanoscale holograms, expanding electron wave control techniques beyond previous capabilities.

Findings

Successfully generated electron Airy beams via holography.

Observed self-healing and shape preservation of electron Airy beams.

Proposed applications in electron steering and interferometry.

Abstract

We report the first experimental generation and observation of Airy beams of free electrons. The electron Airy beams are generated by diffraction of electrons through a nanoscale hologram, that imprints a cubic phase modulation on the beams' transverse plane. We observed the spatial evolution dynamics of an arc-shaped, self accelerating and shape preserving electron Airy beams. We directly observed the ability of electrons to self-heal, restoring their original shape after passing an obstacle. This electromagnetic method opens up new avenues for steering electrons, like their photonic counterparts, since their wave packets can be imprinted with arbitrary shapes or trajectories. Furthermore, these beams can be easily manipulated using magnetic or electric potentials. It is also possible to efficiently self mix narrow beams having opposite signs of acceleration, hence obtaining a new type of electron interferometer.