Measurements of hose instability of a relativistic electron beam

The observed disruption of a self-focused, relativistic electron beam propagating through a gas is shown to result from the growth of m=1 (’’kink’’ or ’’hose’’) perturbations. Measurements of the frequency dependence of the spatial amplification rate are presented. An upper cutoff to the frequency range for hose amplification is observed, in agreement with a theoretical model that includes the damping effects of a spread in the particle betatron frequency.