All-Optical Scheme for Generation of Isolated Attosecond Electron Pulses

We theoretically propose an all-optical scheme for generation of isolated electron pulses with subfemtosecond durations for ultrafast electron microscopy and diffraction. The scheme is based on simultaneous longitudinal and transverse momentum modulation of freely propagating electrons at two distinct frequencies via ponderomotive interaction with tailored light fields of three phase-controlled laser pulses in vacuum. After a drift distance, an attosecond electron pulse train is formed with the individual pulses displaced in the transverse direction. Spatial filtering of the electron beam by an aperture leads to isolation of an individual attosecond pulse with a duration of <100  as. Subfemtosecond isolated electron pulses will enable direct space-time imaging of attosecond electronic dynamics in atoms, molecules, and solids with atomic spatial resolution, allowing us to directly observe phenomena such as electron tunneling or electron-electron interaction in strong laser fields of few-cycle laser pulses.