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Free-electron lasers

Electron shaping for continuous terahertz coverage

Modulating an electron beam with a frequency-beating laser enables a free-electron laser to generate high-power, narrowband terahertz pulses that can be continuously tuned from 7.8 to 30.8 terahertz.

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Fig. 1: Schematic layout of the accelerator and free-electron laser (FEL) beamlines at the Shanghai soft X-ray FEL facility.

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Correspondence to Keigo Kawase or Goro Isoyama.

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Kawase, K., Isoyama, G. Electron shaping for continuous terahertz coverage. Nat. Photon. 20, 1–2 (2026). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41566-025-01829-4

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