Time-of-flight electron energy loss spectroscopy using TM110 deflection cavities

W Verhoeven; J F M van Rens; M A W van Ninhuijs; W F Toonen; E R Kieft; P H A Mutsaers; O J Luiten

doi:10.1063/1.4962698

Time-of-flight electron energy loss spectroscopy using TM₁₁₀ deflection cavities

Struct Dyn. 2016 Sep 13;3(5):054303. doi: 10.1063/1.4962698. eCollection 2016 Sep.

Authors

W Verhoeven¹, J F M van Rens¹, M A W van Ninhuijs¹, W F Toonen¹, E R Kieft², P H A Mutsaers¹, O J Luiten¹

Affiliations

¹ Department of Applied Physics, Coherence and Quantum Technology Group, Eindhoven University of Technology , P.O. Box 513, 5600 MB Eindhoven, The Netherlands.
² FEI Company , Achtseweg Noord 5, 5651 GG Eindhoven, The Netherlands.

Abstract

We demonstrate the use of two TM₁₁₀ resonant cavities to generate ultrashort electron pulses and subsequently measure electron energy losses in a time-of-flight type of setup. The method utilizes two synchronized microwave cavities separated by a drift space of 1.45 m. The setup has an energy resolution of 12 ± 2 eV FWHM at 30 keV, with an upper limit for the temporal resolution of 2.7 ± 0.4 ps. Both the time and energy resolution are currently limited by the brightness of the tungsten filament electron gun used. Through simulations, it is shown that an energy resolution of 0.95 eV and a temporal resolution of 110 fs can be achieved using an electron gun with a higher brightness. With this, a new method is provided for time-resolved electron spectroscopy without the need for elaborate laser setups or expensive magnetic spectrometers.