Abstract

We have developed a compact terahertz (THz) free electron laser (FEL) operating in the wavelength range of 100-1200 pm, which corresponds to 0.3-3 THz. THz radiation from the FEL shows well collimated Gaussian spatial distribution and narrow spectral width of 0.3 cm^-1, which is Fourier transform limited by the estimated pulse duration of 20 ps. The THz FEL beam shows good performance in pulse-energy stability, polarization, spectrum and spatial distribution. The main application of the FEL is THz imaging for bio-medical researches. We are developing THz imaging techniques by 2-dimensional (2-D) scanning. More advanced imaging techniques of single pulse capturing with the electro-optic method and 3-D holography are under development. In this paper we will show and discuss the main results of THz imaging by using the KAERI compact FEL.

© 2005 Optical Society of America