Compact inline optical electron polarimeter.

A compact optical electron polarimeter using a helium target is described. It offers a maximum fluorescence detection efficiency of ~20 Hz/nA, which is an order of magnitude higher than that of earlier designs. With an argon target, this device is expected to have a polarimetric figure-of-merit of 270 Hz/nA. By relying on a magnetic field to guide a longitudinally spin-polarized electron beam, the present instrument employs fewer electrodes. It also uses a commercially available integrated photon counting module. These features allow it to occupy a smaller volume and make it easier to operate.