The critical number of photons in free-electron devices: A quantum effect?
- 1 January 1983
- journal article
- Published by AIP Publishing in Journal of Applied Physics
- Vol. 54 (1) , 452-454
- https://doi.org/10.1063/1.331682
Abstract
Within the S matrix approach to the free-electron devices, it is shown that the depletion of photons by the electron beam in the interaction volume stops when the number of photons becomes some critical number, mc. In the linear recoil approximation, the expression for mc (or equivalently for critical photon energy Ec) depends only on kinematics, suggesting that it has a general validity for all kinds of free-electron devices. As two numerical examples of mc, which is inversly proportional to ℏ, are not compatible with infinities, we argue that the origin of mc may be quantum mechanical. Some practical aspects of Ec are also discussed.This publication has 3 references indexed in Scilit:
- Free-electron Čerenkov laserJournal of Applied Physics, 1981
- Multiphoton analysis of the free electron laserOptics Communications, 1980
- Observation of Stimulated Emission of Radiation by Relativistic Electrons in a Spatially Periodic Transverse Magnetic FieldPhysical Review Letters, 1976