Ultrafast observation and control of particle accelerators

Synchrotron radiation facilities (and accelerators in general) are subject to dynamical instabilities. Thanks to our expertise in nonlinear dynamics, we have developed original methods based on “chaos control” to manipulate and control the electron bunch instabilities. The first demonstration of the method (Nature Physics 15 (2019)) has paved the way to the generation of stable coherent terahertz sources in accelerator-based light sources.

This activity also required a strong development of ultrafast measurement systems in order to monitor the electron bunches in the accelerator but also the emitted radiation. This type of measurements encouraged us to solve several measurement challenges: a time resolution in the pico/sub-picosecond range, high acquisition rates above the MHz+ together with single-shot and real-time operation. Several successes in THz ultrafast measurements, particularly the unique conceptual approach reported by our group in Nature/LSA article in 2022 (with a demonstration following at FERMI in 2023), elevate our team to the position of leader in ultrafast single-shot measurement of THz field. Our team is currently receiving demands for joined experiments and/or advice from a number of facilities.