Real-time single-shot measurement of the femtosecond electron beam duration in laser wakefield accelerators is discussed for both experimental design and theoretical analysis that combines polarimetry and interferometry. The probe pulse polarization is rotated by the azimuthal magnetic field of the electron beam and then introduced into a Michelson-type interferometer for self-interference. The electron beam duration is obtained from the region size of the interference fringes, which is independent of the pulse width of the probe laser. Using a larger magnification system or incident angle, the measurement resolution can be less than 1 fs.

Beam quality degradation during the transition from a laser wakefield accelerator to the vacuum is one of the reasons that cause the beam transport distortion, which hinders the way to compact free-electron-lasers. Here, we performed transition simulation to initialize the beam parameters for beam optics transport. This initialization was crucial in matching the experimental results and the designed evolution of the beamline. We experimentally characterized properties of high-quality laser-wakefield-accelerated electron beams, such as transverse beam profile, divergence, and directionality after long-distance transport. By installing magnetic quadrupole lenses with tailored strength gradients, we successfully collimated the electron beams with tunable energies from 200 to 600 MeV.