A new extraction technique has been studied at the CERN Proton Synchrotron with a view of using it for the fixed-target physics programme at the Super Proton Synchrotron. The extraction scheme is based on advanced concepts of non-linear beam dynamics: prior to extraction a particle beam is split into several beamlets in a transverse plane by crossing a stable resonance, which allows extracting the beamlets over multiple turns. The principle of the extraction, the detail of its implementation, and the progress of the beam commissioning over the years are discussed here. More importantly, the results obtained during the first period of successful use for the physics programme are presented, focusing on the performance analysis of the novel extraction.
Following a successful commissioning period, the multiturn extraction (MTE) at the CERN Proton Synchrotron (PS) has been applied for the fixed-target physics programme at the Super Proton Synchrotron (SPS) since September 2015. This exceptional extraction technique was proposed to replace the longserving continuous transfer (CT) extraction, which has the drawback of inducing high activation in the ring. MTE exploits the principles of nonlinear beam dynamics to perform loss-free beam splitting in the horizontal phase space. Over multiple turns, the resulting beamlets are then transferred to the downstream accelerator. The operational deployment of MTE was rendered possible by the full understanding and mitigation of different hardware limitations and by redesigning the extraction trajectories and nonlinear optics, which was required due to the installation of a dummy septum to reduce the activation of the magnetic extraction septum. This paper focuses on these key features including the use of the transverse damper and the septum shadowing, which allowed a transition from the MTE study to a mature operational extraction scheme.
The CERN Proton Synchrotron (PS) routinely crosses transition energy at around 6 GeV in order to accelerate protons that are injected in the Super Proton Synchrotron (SPS) or transferred to users of fixed target experiments. Depending on the beam parameters and intensity, a fast vertical coherent instability occurs during transition crossing. The instability, characterized by beam losses and a frequency spectrum in the range of 500-900 MHz, represents an important intensity limitation for the neutron time-of-flight (nTOF) beam, and in general could represent a bottleneck for future high intensity beams. In order to better understand the nature and the source of the instability and to find possible mitigations, a dedicated measurement campaign took place. Parallel to the measurements, beam dynamics simulations have been performed to study the observed instability. In particular, single bunch effects have been simulated using the PS transverse beam coupling impedance model developed over recent years. In this paper we present the measurements results along with the obtained instability thresholds. Different beam configurations and stabilizing effects, such as the gamma jump scheme and the octupole-induced tune spread, are also considered. The measurements results are compared with simulations.
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