Electron Polarimetry

Electron Beam Polarimetry

Along with its well known charge and mass, the electron also carries an intrinsic angular momentum, or spin. The rules of quantum mechanics allow us to measure only the probability that the electron spin is in one of two allowed spin states. When a beam carries a net excess of electrons in one of these two allowed spin states, the beam is said to be polarized. The beam polarization may be measu...

Electron polarimetry with bremsstrahlung

Due to the spin-orbit interaction, the electron scattering from the nucleus is sensitive to the spin orientation of that electron. This is used for polarimetry of electron beams in the Mott method. The spin-orbit interaction was also observed in bremsstrahlung. In this article we analyze its potential for polarimetry as an alternative to the Mott method. It can simultaneously measure all three ...

Optical electron polarimetry with heavy noble gases.

We have measured the polarization of fluorescence emitted by the noble gases He, Ne, Ar, Kr, and Xe following impact excitation by polarized electrons. In He, the 3P→2S transition was studied; in the heavy noble gases the np(n11)p D3→np(n11)s P2 transitions were analyzed. We investigated these transitions as candidates for efficient optical electron polarimetry and found that, because of their ...

New insights into Mott-scattering electron polarimetry.

Polarimetry in the Visible and Infrared: Application to CMB Polarimetry

Interstellar polarization from aligned dust grains can be measured both in transmission at visible and near-infrared wavelengths and in emission at far-infrared and sub-mm wavelengths. These observations can help predict the behavior of foreground contamination of CMB polarimetry by dust in the Milky Way. Fractional polarization in emission from aligned dust grains will be at the higher range o...