Generation of energy-tunable and ultra-short-pulse gamma rays via inverse Compton scattering in an electron storage ring

Inverse Compton-scattered gamma rays of tunable energy were generated by changing the collision angle between a laser and an electron beam of fixed energy at the electron storage ring, UVSOR-II. Analytic expressions were derived for energy and intensity of the gamma rays. The measured energy and intensity of the gamma rays agreed with the theoretical values, and the pulse width was calculated to be a few ps, under experimental conditions. It was shown that ultra-short gamma ray pulses with a pulse width of 150 fs can be generated by optimizing the size of the laser spot.