arXiv subjects

James K. Jones

Publications and source records attributed to James K. Jones.

5 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2026

Controlling external injection in laser-plasma accelerators with terahertz frequency bunch manipulation

Laser-plasma wakefield acceleration (LWFA) offers ultrahigh accelerating gradients in compact setups, but the complex non-linear nature of the process makes it challenging to generate high-quality beams. Injection of electron bunches from an external source into a plasma accelerator provides a promising route to improved performance; however, electron bunches from conventional radio-frequency (RF)-based injectors suffer from non-linear compression and laser-beam asynchrony, leading to energy jitter and emittance growth. We present a fundamental concept of terahertz-controlled electron bunches for external injection into LWFA. This terahertz-frequency approach provides temporal locking between the electron beam and the drive laser, and enables the compression of high-quality beams to sub-10-fs durations before injection into the LWFA. Numerical simulations demonstrate that GeV-scale acceleration with excellent beam quality and stability -- energy jitter and energy spread around 0.2% -- can be achieved using this method. This concept opens new opportunities for stable, multi-stage laser-driven accelerators and supports the development of next-generation applications such as free-electron lasers (FELs).

physics.acc-ph↗

arXiv2025

Terahertz control of relativistic electron beams for femtosecond bunching and laser-synchronized temporal locking

Femtosecond relativistic electron bunches and micro-bunch trains synchronised with femtosecond precision to external laser sources are widely sought for next-generation accelerator and photonic technologies, from extreme UV and X-ray light sources for materials science, to ultrafast electron diffraction and future high-energy physics colliders. While few-femtosecond bunches have been demonstrated, achieving the control, stability and femtosecond-level laser synchronisation remains critically out of reach. Here we demonstrate a concept for laser-driven compression of high-energy (35.5 MeV) electron bunches with temporal synchronisation to a high-power (few-TW) laser system. Laser-generated multi-cycle terahertz (THz) pulses drive periodic electron energy modulation, enabling subsequent magnetic compression capable of generating tuneable picosecond-spaced bunch trains with 30 pC total charge and 50 A peak currents, or to compress a single bunch by a factor of 27 down to 15 fs duration. The THz-driven compression simultaneously drives temporal-locking of the bunch to the THz drive laser, providing a route to femtosecond-level synchronisation, overcoming the timing jitter inherent to radio-frequency accelerators and high-power laser systems. This THz technique offers compact and flexible bunch control with unprecedented temporal synchronisation, opening a pathway to unlock new capabilities for free electron lasers, ultrafast electron diffraction and novel plasma accelerators.

physics.acc-ph↗

arXiv2019

Acceleration of relativistic beams using laser-generated terahertz pulses

Dielectric structures driven by laser-generated terahertz (THz) pulses may hold the key to overcoming the technological limitations of conventional particle accelerators and with recent experimental demonstrations of acceleration, compression and streaking of low-energy (sub-100 keV) electron beams, operation at relativistic beam energies is now essential to realize the full potential of THz-driven structures. We present the first THz-driven linear acceleration of relativistic 35 MeV electron bunches, exploiting the collinear excitation of a dielectric-lined waveguide driven by the longitudinal electric field component of polarization-tailored, narrowband THz pulses. Our results pave the way to unprecedented control over relativistic electron beams, providing bunch compression for ultrafast electron diffraction, energy manipulation for bunch diagnostics, and ultimately delivering high-field gradients for compact THz-driven particle acceleration.

physics.acc-ph↗

arXiv2012

Comparison of Compression Schemes for CLARA

CLARA (Compact Linear Advanced Research Accelerator)at Daresbury Laboratory is proposed to be the UK's national FEL test facility. The accelerator will be a ~250 MeV electron linac capable of producing short, high brightness electron bunches. The machine comprises a 2.5cell RF photocathode gun, one 2 m and three 5 m normal conducting S-band (2998MHz) accelerating structures and a variable magnetic compression chicane. CLARA will be used as a test bed for novel FEL configurations. We present a comparison of acceleration and compression schemes for the candidate machine layout.

physics.acc-ph↗

arXiv2009

Dynamics of Particles in Non Scaling FFAG Accelerators

Non scaling Fixed-Field Alternating Gradient (FFAG) accelerators have an unprecedented potential for muon acceleration, as well as for medical purposes based on carbon and proton hadron therapy. They also represent a possible active element for an Accelerator Driven Subcritical Reactor (ADSR). Starting from first principle the Hamiltonian formalism for the description of the dynamics of particles in non scaling FFAG machines has been developed. The stationary reference (closed) orbit has been found within the Hamiltonian framework. The dependence of the path length on the energy deviation has been described in terms of higher order dispersion functions. The latter have been used subsequently to specify the longitudinal part of the Hamiltonian. It has been shown that higher order phase slip coefficients should be taken into account to adequately describe the acceleration in non scaling FFAG accelerators. A complete theory of the fast (serpentine) acceleration in non scaling FFAGs has been developed. An example of the theory is presented for the parameters of the Electron Machine with Many Applications (EMMA), a prototype electron non scaling FFAG to be hosted at Daresbury Laboratory.

physics.acc-ph↗