Free electron nanolaser based on the graphene plasmons

TL;DR

This paper proposes a graphene plasmon-based free electron nanolaser capable of generating coherent radiation from THz to extreme UV, using non-relativistic and mildly relativistic electrons for downconversion and upconversion processes.

Contribution

It introduces a novel scheme for a tabletop short-wavelength free electron nanolaser utilizing graphene plasmons and self-consistent Maxwell--Vlasov equations.

Findings

Coherent downconversion of infrared to THz radiation is feasible with non-relativistic electrons.

Upconversion from mid-infrared to extreme UV can be achieved with mildly relativistic electrons.

The proposed mechanism enables a compact, short-wavelength free electron laser.

Abstract

In this paper, a possible way to achieve lasing from THz to extreme UV domain due to stimulated scattering of graphene plasmons on the free electrons is considered. The analytical-quantitative description of the proposed FEL scheme is based on the self-consistent set of the Maxwell--Vlasov equations. We study the downconversion as well as the upconversion. It is shown that the coherent downconversion of infrared radiation to THz one can be achieved using a source of very non-relativistic electrons at the resonant coupling with the graphene plasmons. Due to the strongly confined graphene plasmons, the upconversion of mid-infrared to extreme UV radiation can be achieved with the mildly relativistic electron beams. The latter is a promising mechanism for the tabletop short-wavelength free electron nanolaser.