Electron source concept for single-shot sub-100 fs electron diffraction in the 100 keV range

We present a method for producing sub-100 fs electron bunches that are suitable for single-shot ultrafast electron diffraction experiments in the 100 keV energy range. A combination of analytical estimates and state-of-the-art particle tracking simulations show that it is possible to create 100 keV, 0.1 pC, 30 fs electron bunches with a spot size smaller than 500 mu m and a transverse coherence length of 3 nm, using established technologies in a table-top setup. The system operates in the space-charge dominated regime to produce energy-correlated bunches that are recompressed by radio-frequency techniques. With this approach we overcome the Coulomb expansion of the bunch, providing a single-shot, ultrafast electron diffraction source concept. (C) 2007 American Institute of Physics.