Van der Waals (vdW) materials have attracted much interest for their myriad unique electronic, mechanical and thermal properties. In particular, they are promising candidates for monochromatic, table-top X-ray sources. This work reveals that the versatility of the table-top vdW X-ray source goes beyond what has been demonstrated so far. By introducing a tilt angle between the vdW structure and the incident electron beam, it is theoretically and experimentally shown that the accessible photon energy range is more than doubled. This allows for greater versatility in real-time tuning of the vdW X-ray source. Furthermore, this work shows that the accessible photon energy range is maximized by simultaneously controlling both the electron energy and the vdW structure tilt. These results should pave the way for highly tunable, compact X-ray sources, with potential applications including hyperspectral X-ray fluoroscopy and X-ray quantum optics.
We experimentally measure quantum recoil in Smith-Purcell radiation, achieved by scattering free electrons off the periodic lattice of van der Waals crystals to generate multimode coherent X-rays.
We experimentally show that van der Waals heterostructures are a versatile platform for bespoke, multicolor, compact X-ray sources whose spectra can be tailored via atomic design.
We theoretically predict and experimentally demonstrate unprecedented versatility in free electron-driven X-ray sources based on van der Waals (vdW) materials. By controlling the crystal tilt, we broaden the accessible X-ray photon range by over 100%.
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