Coherent synchrotron radiation by excitation of surface plasmon polariton on near-critical solid microtube surface

TL;DR

This paper proposes a novel method to generate coherent synchrotron radiation using surface plasmon polaritons excited on a microtube surface, leading to significantly enhanced X-ray coherence through laser-driven electron modulation.

Contribution

It introduces a new CSR generation mechanism based on SPP excitation on near-critical microtubes, with detailed simulation validation and discussion of experimental feasibility.

Findings

X-ray coherence enhanced by up to two orders of magnitude.

Efficient coupling of laser pulses to cylindrical SPP modes.

Generation of CSR across all azimuthal directions with harmonic structure.

Abstract

Coherent synchrotron radiation (CSR) is crucial for the development of powerful ultrashort light sources. We present a mechanism for generating CSR in the form of generalised superradiance, based on surface plasmon polaritons (SPPs), which are resonantly excited on a solid, near-critical-density inner surface of a microtube. A high-intensity, circularly polarised laser pulse, propagating along the microtube axis, efficiently couples the cylindrical SPP modes. This process creates azimuthally structured, rotating electromagnetic fields. These rotating fields subsequently confine, modulate, and directly accelerate surface electrons to emit CSR in the Vavilov-Cherenkov angle. We further demonstrate that by improving the azimuthal symmetry of these electrons, the helical modulation enables CSR emission across all azimuthal directions in the form of isolated harmonics, significantly enhancing radiation intensity even when full coherence is imperfect. Our full 3D Particle-in-Cell simulations indicate this scheme can generate X-rays with coherence enhanced by up to two orders of magnitude compared to incoherent emission. The challenges to experimentally realise this scheme are discussed, including the need for high-contrast lasers to prevent pre-plasma formation and the demanding tolerances for microtube fabrication and alignment, while these challenges are not beyond the scope of existing or near-future experimental capabilities.