Double-slit experiment in momentum space

Abstract

Young's classic double-slit experiment demonstrates the reality of interference when waves and particles travel simultaneously along two different spatial paths. Here, we propose a double-slit experiment in momentum space, realized in the free-space elastic scattering of vortex electrons. We show that this process proceeds along two paths in momentum space, which are well localized and well separated from each other. For such vortex beams, the (plane-wave) amplitudes along the two paths acquire adjustable phase shifts and produce interference fringes in the final angular distribution. We argue that this experiment can be realized with the present day technology. We show that it gives experimental access to the Coulomb phase, a quantity which plays an important role in all charged particle scattering but which usual scattering experiments are insensitive to.

6 pages, 3 figures; v2: extra clarifications, matches published versoin

References in corpus (4)

• Semiclassical Dynamics of Electron Wave Packet States with Phase Vortices
• Colliding particles carrying non-zero orbital angular momentum
• Imaging the dynamics of free-electron Landau states
• Twisted electron in a strong laser wave

Cited by in corpus (10)

• Theory and applications of free-electron vortex states
• Promises and challenges of high-energy vortex states collisions
• Elastic scattering of vortex electrons provides direct access to the Coulomb phase
• Doing spin physics with unpolarized particles
• Toward the observation of interference effects in nonlinear Compton scattering
• Kinematic surprises in twisted particle collisions
• Twisted particle collisions: a new tool for spin physics
• Electron vortex beams in non-uniform magnetic fields
• Double-twisted spectroscopy with delocalized atoms
• Which-Way Measurement and Momentum Kicks