Capturing ultrafast structural evolutions with a single pulse of MeV electrons: Radio frequency streak camera based electron diffraction

In this paper we report on the experimental demonstration of using relativistic electron diffraction and an radiofrequency deflecting cavity to capture in a single shot the entire time-history of the ultrafast laser-induced heating and melting of a single crystal gold sample. By recording the time variation in the Bragg peaks on the streak image of a 16 ps long electron beam it is possible to reconstruct with 400 fs temporal resolution the evolution of the sample structure induced by a 35 mJ/cm(2) 400 nm laser pump pulse. (C) 2010 American Institute of Physics. [doi: 10.1063/1.3520283]