Improvement of the CERN SPS electrostatic septa ion traps
At CERN, the SPS synchrotron is equipped with a slow extraction channel towards the fixed target beam lines in the North Area This channel includes five consecutive electrostatic septa, where the field free region and the active high field region are separated by an array of tungsten-rhenium wires. The field-free region provides for the circulating beam, while the high field region is used to deflect the extracted beam. Since the residual gas can be ionized by the orbiting beam, low energy ions could cross the wire array and enter the high field region and cause high voltage breakdown when accelerated onto the cathode. To prevent low energy ions from entering this high electric field region, a vertical field is applied to the orbiting beam using so-called `ion traps' for active protection. The vertical field is created by electrodes placed inside the region containing the circulating beam. Due to electromagnetic coupling onto the ion trap electrodes observed with the high frequency LHC beam (25 ns spaced bunches), the efficiency of the ion traps is greatly reduced. This leads to increased vacuum activity (electron cloud related) as well as high spark rates both in the main field and between the ion trap electrodes and their grounded support. In view of the SPS performance increase required for HL-LHC, this paper highlights the upgrades and improvements required to obtain a stable ion trap field and significantly reduce the number of breakdown events observed with the LHC beam in the accelerator.
Conceptual Design Report -- eSPS
The design of a primary electron beam facility at CERN is described. It re-enables the SPS as an electron accelerator, and leverages the development invested in CLIC technology for its injector and as accelerator R&D infrastructure. The facility would be relevant for several of the key priorities in the 2020 update of the European Strategy for Particle Physics, such as an e+e- Higgs factory, accelerator R&D, dark sector physics, and neutrino physics. In addition, it could serve experiments in nuclear physics. The electron beam delivered by this facility would provide access to light dark matter production significantly beyond the targets predicted by a thermal dark matter origin, and for natures of dark matter particles that are not accessible by direct detection experiments. It would also enable electro-nuclear measurements crucial for precise modelling the energy dependence of neutrino-nucleus interactions, which is needed to precisely measure neutrino oscillations as a function of energy. The implementation of the facility is the natural next step in the development of X-band high-gradient acceleration technology, a key technology for compact and cost-effective electron/positron linacs. It would also become the only facility with multi-GeV drive bunches and truly independent electron witness bunches for plasma wakefield acceleration. The facility would be used for the development and studies of a large number of components and phenomena for a future e+e- Higgs and electroweak factory as the first stage of a next circular collider at CERN, and its cavities in the SPS would be the same type as foreseen for such a future collider. The operation of the SPS with electrons would train a new generation of CERN staff on circular electron accelerators. The facility could be made operational in about five years and would operate in parallel and without interference with Run 4 at the LHC.
New Low-Profile Applicators for Local Heating of Tissues
A new type of low-profile applicator is described giving efficient power transfer to tissue with low leakage. It consists of a resonant element spaced from a ground plane by low-loss material having high relative permittivity and some relative permeability. This combination is covered by similar material which can be placed in direct contact with the tissue to be heated, or separated from it by a water bolus as required. Laboratory measurements using phantom materials show that these applicators are well matched and produce well defined and relatively uniform heating profiles. Applicators having maximum dimensions of 3-15 cm covering the frequency range 1000-100 MHz, respectively, are described. Penetration depths of at least 4 cm at 100-200 MHz are achieved. Tests on anesthetised pigs and some clinical assessment have confirmed the usefulness of this compact low-frequency type of applicator and have shown that performance compares favorably with that of other recently reported types. The design can be optimized for treatment of specific sites, and suitable choice of dimensions and electrical characteristics of the layer material allow the low-profile concept to be extended over a wide range of operating frequencies.