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1. Analysis and applications of a heralded electron source

   https://doi.org/10.1088/1367-2630/ada8d0  

   Koppell, Stewart; Simonaitis, John; Krielaart, Maurice; Berggren, Karl_K; Keathley, Phillip_D; Putnam, William (January 2025, New Journal of Physics)

   Abstract We analytically describe the noise properties of a heralded electron source made from a standard electron gun, a weak photonic coupler, a single photon counter, and an electron energy filter. We describe the sub-Poissonian statistics of the source, the engineering requirements for efficient heralding, and several potential applications. We use simple models of electron beam processes to demonstrate advantages which are situational, but potentially significant in electron lithography and scanning electron microscopy. 

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2. Evidence of a coupled electron-phonon liquid in NbGe2

   https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-021-25547-x  

   Yang, Hung-Yu; Yao, Xiaohan; Plisson, Vincent; Mozaffari, Shirin; Scheifers, Jan P.; Savvidou, Aikaterini Flessa; Choi, Eun Sang; McCandless, Gregory T.; Padlewski, Mathieu F.; Putzke, Carsten; et al (September 2021, Nature Communications)

   Abstract Whereas electron-phonon scattering relaxes the electron’s momentum in metals, a perpetual exchange of momentum between phonons and electrons may conserve total momentum and lead to a coupled electron-phonon liquid. Such a phase of matter could be a platform for observing electron hydrodynamics. Here we present evidence of an electron-phonon liquid in the transition metal ditetrelide, NbGe₂, from three different experiments. First, quantum oscillations reveal an enhanced quasiparticle mass, which is unexpected in NbGe₂with weak electron-electron correlations, hence pointing at electron-phonon interactions. Second, resistivity measurements exhibit a discrepancy between the experimental data and standard Fermi liquid calculations. Third, Raman scattering shows anomalous temperature dependences of the phonon linewidths that fit an empirical model based on phonon-electron coupling. We discuss structural factors, such as chiral symmetry, short metallic bonds, and a low-symmetry coordination environment as potential design principles for materials with coupled electron-phonon liquid. 

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3. Plasma compressibility and the generation of electrostatic electron Kelvin–Helmholtz instability

   https://doi.org/10.1063/5.0208134  

   Che, H. (July 2024, Physics of Plasmas)

   This study explores the generation of electrostatic (ES) electron Kelvin–Helmholtz instability (EKHI) in collisionless plasma with a step-function electron velocity shear akin to that developed in the electron diffusion region in magnetic reconnection. In incompressible plasma, ES EKHI does not arise in any velocity shear profile due to the decoupling of the electric potential from the electron momentum equation. Instead, a fluid-like Kelvin–Helmholtz instability (KHI) can arise. However, in compressible plasma, the compressibility couples the electric potential with the electron dynamics, leading to the emergence of a new ES mode EKHI on Debye length λDe, accompanied by the co-generation of an electron acoustic-like wave. The minimum threshold of ES EKHI is ΔU>2cse, i.e., the electron velocity shear is larger than twice the electron acoustic speed cse. The corresponding growth rate is Im(ω)=((ΔU/cse)2−4)1/2ωpe, where ωpe is the electron plasma frequency. 

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4. Parametric dependence of hot electron relaxation timescales on electron-electron and electron-phonon interaction strengths

   https://doi.org/10.1038/s42005-020-00442-x  

   Wilson, Richard B.; Coh, Sinisa (December 2020, Communications Physics)

   null (Ed.)

   Abstract Understanding how photoexcited electron dynamics depend on electron-electron (e-e) and electron-phonon (e-p) interaction strengths is important for many fields, e.g. ultrafast magnetism, photocatalysis, plasmonics, and others. Here, we report simple expressions that capture the interplay of e-e and e-p interactions on electron distribution relaxation times. We observe a dependence of the dynamics on e-e and e-p interaction strengths that is universal to most metals and is also counterintuitive. While only e-p interactions reduce the total energy stored by excited electrons, the time for energy to leave the electronic subsystem also depends on e-e interaction strengths because e-e interactions increase the number of electrons emitting phonons. The effect of e-e interactions on energy-relaxation is largest in metals with strong e-p interactions. Finally, the time high energy electron states remain occupied depends only on the strength of e-e interactions, even if e-p scattering rates are much greater than e-e scattering rates. 

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5. Superfast precipitation of energetic electrons in the radiation belts of the Earth

   https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-022-29291-8  

   Zhang, Xiao-Jia; Artemyev, Anton; Angelopoulos, Vassilis; Tsai, Ethan; Wilkins, Colin; Kasahara, Satoshi; Mourenas, Didier; Yokota, Shoichiro; Keika, Kunihiro; Hori, Tomoaki; et al (March 2022, Nature Communications)

   Abstract Energetic electron precipitation from Earth’s outer radiation belt heats the upper atmosphere and alters its chemical properties. The precipitating flux intensity, typically modelled using inputs from high-altitude, equatorial spacecraft, dictates the radiation belt’s energy contribution to the atmosphere and the strength of space-atmosphere coupling. The classical quasi-linear theory of electron precipitation through moderately fast diffusive interactions with plasma waves predicts that precipitating electron fluxes cannot exceed fluxes of electrons trapped in the radiation belt, setting an apparent upper limit for electron precipitation. Here we show from low-altitude satellite observations, that ~100 keV electron precipitation rates often exceed this apparent upper limit. We demonstrate that such superfast precipitation is caused by nonlinear electron interactions with intense plasma waves, which have not been previously incorporated in radiation belt models. The high occurrence rate of superfast precipitation suggests that it is important for modelling both radiation belt fluxes and space-atmosphere coupling. 

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