[en] Temporal synchronization systems, which measure electron beam time of arrival with respect to a laser pulse, are critical for operation of advanced laser-driven accelerators and light sources. State-of-the-art synchronization tools, relying on electronic e-beam response and photodetector laser response are limited to few GHz bandwidths in most practical configurations. This paper presents a temporal diagnostic instrumentation based upon a photoconductive THz antenna, which could offer an inexpensive and user friendly method to provide shot-to-shot relative time of arrival information with sub-picosecond accuracy. We describe the overall instrument design and proof-of-concept prototype results at the UCLA PEGASUS facility. (author)

[en] We simulate “zero-slippage” phase space manipulation driven by a guided THz pulse using the 3-D General Particle Tracer code and compare our results to analytical predictions for bunch compression and angular deflection. With the beam parameters available at the UCLA PEGASUS laboratory for a proof-of-concept experiment, we simulate compression by nearly a factor of 10. We compare two deflection mechanisms for transverse streaking with an emphasis on the 3-D effects introduced by the undulator field.

[en] In this paper, we describe an inverse free electron laser (IFEL) interaction driven by a near single-cycle THz pulse that is group velocity-matched to an electron bunch inside a waveguide, allowing for a sustained interaction in a magnetic undulator. We discuss the application of this guided-THz IFEL technique for compression of a relativistic electron bunch and synchronization with the external laser pulse used to generate the THz pulse via optical rectification, as well as a laser-driven THz streaking diagnostic with the potential for femtosecond scale temporal resolution. Initial measurements of the THz waveform via an electro-optic sampling based technique confirm the predicted reduction of the group velocity, using a curved parallel plate waveguide, as a function of the varying aperture size of the guide. We also present the design of a proof-of-principle experiment based on the bunch parameters available at the UCLA PEGASUS laboratory. With a 10 MV m⁻¹ THz peak field, our simulation model predicts compression of a 6 MeV 100 fs electron beam by nearly an order of magnitude and a significant reduction of its initial timing jitter.