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Search indexed NASA NTRS and DOE OSTI research on propulsion, heat transfer, battery materials and energy systems. Follow report and document links to the original sources.

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At least 73 records · Page 4
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2025

A profile monitor for proton radiography experiments at the Los Alamos Neutron Science Center

The Proton Radiography (pRad) facility at the Los Alamos Neutron Science Center utilizes pulses of protons delivered by the 800 MeV linear accelerator to produce a series of radiographic images to study the dynamic behavior of materials under extreme conditions. Radiographs taken with an empty field of view, or beam pictures, are used to normalize transmission. However, because the center of the proton beam shifts between pulses, an in situ method for measuring beam position is required to normalize images for beam movement to perform absolute radiography. The beam profile monitor described here uses an array of scintillating fibers positioned in the beam path to produce light proportional to beam intensity across the beam cross section. This light is detected using fast photodiodes and a digital oscilloscope, providing a response time of several nanoseconds—suitable for measuring the 50-ns proton pulses used in pRad. The profile monitor achieves a measured position precision of 40 μm and an intensity precision of 0.7%, allowing for beam movement corrections to be applied to images, thereby improving data accuracy and image quality.

46 INSTRUMENTATION RELATED TO NUCLEAR SCIENCE AND ↗
DOE OSTI2025

Laser beam pointing stabilization using analog position-sensitive diodes

Laser wire scanners have been used for ion beam profile and emittance measurements at the Spallation Neutron Source linear accelerator. Due to propagation distances exceeding 100 m, reliable measurements require laser beam stabilization, previously accomplished with a feedback control loop using a digital camera as a position sensor [Hardin et al., Opt. Express 19, 2874 (2011)]. Here, this paper presents an upgraded pointing stabilization system utilizing analog position-sensitive diodes (PSDs) as the position detector, optimized with an optical diffuser. The new system significantly surpasses the previous system by offering an order-of-magnitude improvement in radiation tolerance and a bandwidth limited only by the burst repetition rate of the laser beam. Operating with a 60-Hz burst mode laser, the new system effectively suppresses laser beam drifts up to 30 Hz, compared to the previous system’s 4 Hz limit. In addition, the amplitude of spectral components below 0.1 Hz was reduced by a factor of more than 100, which is over seven times greater than was achieved by the previous system.

Data acquisition↗
DOE OSTI2025

The FRIB Decay Station: New Horizons with Rare Isotopes

In May 2022, the Facility for Rare Isotope Beams (FRIB), located on the campus of Michigan State University (MSU), began delivering exotic isotopes to an international community of scientists. New discoveries are now being reported from radioactive decay of neutron-rich nuclei near N = 20 and N = 28.FRIB is expected to produce roughly 80% of the unstable or radioactive isotopes predicted to exist up to uranium (Z = 92). The new user facility is supported by the U.S. Department of Energy, and it is operated by MSU. A high-power superconducting linear accelerator, shaped like a paper-clip, drives the production of these rare isotopes by colliding stable nuclei moving at half the speed of light with a rotating, water-cooled graphite tar-get. These collisions cause the primary stable beam to fragment into a wide variety of unstable nuclei, which can be subsequently filtered through a multistage magnetic separator, the Advanced Rare Isotope Separator, and transported to one of several experimental stations. The FRIB Decay Station initiator (FDSi) (see Figure 1) was developed to enable comprehensive radio-active decay studies of the exotic nuclei produced by FRIB and it was used in the first two experiments in 2022. Further, the FDSi is a highly reconfigurable multidetector system with two focal planes (FP1 for discrete spectroscopy and FP2 for total absorption spectroscopy) that can be optimized for the specific science goals of each experiment. It is designed, built, and operated by a community of users with the sup-port of U.S. funding agencies, including the Department of Energy and National Science Foundation.

07 ISOTOPE AND RADIATION SOURCES↗
DOE OSTI2025

Coherent frequency combs from electrons colliding with a laser pulse

Highly coherent and powerful light sources capable of generating soft x-ray frequency combs are essential for high precision measurements and rigorous tests of fundamental physics. In this work, we derive the analytical conditions required for the emission of coherent radiation from an electron beam colliding with a laser pulse, modeled as a plane wave. These conditions are applied in a series of numerical simulations, where we show that a soft x-ray frequency comb can be produced if the electrons are regularly-spaced and sufficiently monoenergetic. High quality beams of this kind may be produced in the near future from laser-plasma interactions or linear accelerators. Furthermore, we highlight the advantageous role of employing few-cycle laser pulses in relaxing the stringent monoenergeticity requirements for coherent emission. The conditions derived here can also be used to optimize coherent emission in other frequency ranges, such as the terahertz domain.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗
DOE OSTI2024

Extraction of ion beam from laser ion source for direct plasma injection scheme

Laser ion sources are expected to be used in various applications of heavy ion beam technology. The plasma direct injection scheme (DPIS) is a method in which ion beams extracted from a laser ion source are directly injected into a radio frequency quadrupole (RFQ) linear accelerator. In this study, a new shape of the plasma electrode with a concave surface for the DPIS was proposed to inject a converging beam to a cavity of RFQ accelerator. This approach allows the use of a large-diameter extraction electrode, which is not limited by the aperture of the RFQ electrode rods. The DPIS, using the concave surface electrode, was employed to accelerate C 6+ ion beams. The results indicated that both the beam current and the number of ions increased nearly twice with the proposed electrode shape compared to values obtained with the conventional electrode. This enhancement corresponded to the increased extraction area of the beam.

43 PARTICLE ACCELERATORS↗
DOE OSTI2026

Development of thermal joints for conduction-cooling applications

Abstract In support of the development of conduction-cooled superconducting radiofrequency (SRF) niobium cavities for use in continuous-wave linear accelerators, an experimental study of thermal contact resistance was performed on bolted joints using high-purity niobium, aluminium, and copper along with Apiezon N grease and indium foil as interfacial materials. The geometry of each joint investigated aims at replicating the design adopted in conduction-cooled SRF cavities currently under development at Jefferson Lab. The materials’ thermal conductivity and the joints’ thermal resistance were measured in the temperature range of 3.5 - 10 K. The results showed that the low thermal contact resistance of 2-4 K·cm 2 /W at 4.3 K achieved with Al-In-Nb and Al-Apiezon N-Cu joints should allow the operation of conduction-cooled SRF cavities at a targeted accelerating gradient of ∼10 MV/m.

Lewis, J. [Old Dominion University]↗
DOE OSTI2025

Coincident learning for beam-based rf station fault identification using phase information at the SLAC linac coherent light source

Anomalies in radio-frequency (rf) stations can result in unplanned downtime and performance degradation in linear accelerators such as SLAC’s Linac Coherent Light Source (LCLS). Detecting these anomalies is challenging due to the complexity of accelerator systems, high data volume, and scarcity of labeled fault data. Prior work identified faults using beam-based detection, combining rf amplitude and beam position monitor data. Due to the simplicity of the rf amplitude data, classical methods are sufficient to identify faults, but the recall is constrained by the low-frequency and asynchronous characteristics of the data. In this work, we leverage high-frequency, time-synchronous rf phase data to enhance anomaly detection in the LCLS accelerator. Due to the complexity of phase data, classical methods fail, and we instead train deep neural networks within the Coincident Anomaly Detection (CoAD) framework. We find that applying CoAD to phase data detects nearly 3 times as many anomalies as when applied to amplitude data, while achieving broader coverage across rf stations. Furthermore, the rich structure of phase data enables us to cluster anomalies into distinct physical categories. Through the integration of auxiliary system status bits, we link clusters to specific fault signatures, providing additional granularity for uncovering the root cause of faults. We also investigate interpretability via Shapley values, confirming that the learned models focus on the most informative regions of the data and providing insight for cases where the model makes mistakes. This work demonstrates that phase-based anomaly detection for rf stations improves both diagnostic coverage and root cause analysis in accelerator systems and that deep neural networks are essential for effective analysis.

Accelerator Physics (physics.acc-ph)↗
DOE OSTI2025

The Upgrade of the SNS Extraction Kicker Power Supplies for the Proton Power Upgrade

The Proton Power Upgrade (PPU) project at the Spallation Neutron Source (SNS) aims to enhance the linear accelerator's power output from 1.4 to 2.8 megawatts. A critical focus lies on upgrading the Extraction Kicker Power Supplies to handle the amplified beam power. The existing capacitor charging power supplies lacked the capability to charge the Blumlein-type Pulse Forming Network (PFN) to the required 40 kV at a repetition rate of 60 Hz. To address this limitation, an initial solution involving the use of a resonant charging circuit was proposed. However, a challenge arose with a self-firing issue in the thyristor switch, which proved unsolvable within the given timeframe. Facing a critical decision point in the project, an alternative approach was explored: integrating a supplementary power supply to enhance the overall power capacity. This solution was tested and ultimately chosen as the path forward. To accommodate the additional power supply, the power distribution system had to undergo upgrades. Throughout this endeavor, a comprehensive examination of the system took place, with meticulous identification of key components. This paper delves into the technical challenges encountered during the process and the corresponding solutions that were implemented.

Tan, Yugang [ORNL] (ORCID:0000000155968252)↗
DOE OSTI2025

Theoretical investigation of plasma wave generation by pulsed electron beams in space

Here, we report theoretical calculations of plasma wave generation in the whistler modes and in the extraordinary modes, by pulsed electron beams in a magnetized plasma. The numerical simulations of the wave generation take into account the longitudinal expansion of the electron beam due to the space charge force and the energy spread. The work presented in this article provides predictions for the wave generation performance of the beam plasma interactions experiment (Beam PIE), where pulsed electron beams were produced by a spaceborne radio frequency (RF) linear accelerator. We also theoretically explore the desirable properties of the pulsed electron beam for future space experiments, which will be the next step toward eventually demonstrating the radiation-belt remediation (RBR).

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗
DOE OSTI2026

Extraction and Injection in the Electron Injector for the Electron-Ion Collider

The electron injector for the Electron-Ion Collider (EIC) consists of a linear accelerator, a beam accumulation ring, and the Rapid Cycling Synchrotron (RCS) before the electrons are injected into the Electron Storage Ring (ESR) and collided. Extraction out of the RCS is complicated by limited space and the nominal beam pipe aperture, while injection into the ESR is complicated due to the limitation of kicker strength, so that the kickers will not impact the proton beam in the adjacent Hadron Storage Ring (HSR); additionally, the ESR kickers must also provide enough kick to the stored bunch for the swap-out scheme. This paper covers the injection into and extraction out of the RCS, as well as injection into the ESR, detailing layout, optics, and anticipated parameters of the septa and different kickers.

Deitrick, K. [Thomas Jefferson National Accelerato↗
DOE OSTI2024

RF AND MECHANICAL DESIGN OF A 915 MHz SRF CAVITY FOR CONDUCTION-COOLED CRYOMODULES

Conduction-cooled SRF niobium cavities are being developed for use in compact, continuous-wave electron linear accelerators for a variety of industrial applications. A 915MHz two-cell cavity has been designed to achieve an energy gain of 3.5 MeV. The design of the cell shape aims at minimizing the peak surface magnetic field. Field flatness is achieved by adjusting the length of the outer end half-cells. The higher-order mode analysis shows that absorbers are not required for a moderate beam current of 5 mA. One of the beam tubes has two side-ports for insertion of coaxial fundamental power couplers. The mechanical design and analysis were done to maintain a stress near or less than 15.5 MPa for all anticipated loading conditions. This is half the measured yield strength and is to provide relief from creep when cavity is evacuated and stored with outside atmospheric pressure.

Ciovati, Gianluigi↗
DOE OSTI2026

JAXtronomy: A JAX port of lenstronomy

Gravitational lensing is a phenomenon where light bends around massive objects, resulting in distorted images seen by an observer. Studying gravitationally lensed systems provides insights into cosmology and astrophysics, including constraints of the expansion rate of the Universe and the distribution of dark matter. Thus, we introduce JAXtronomy, a re-implementation of the gravitational lensing software package lenstronomy (Birrer, 2021; Birrer & Amara, 2018) using JAX (Bradbury et al., 2018). JAX is a Python library that uses an accelerated linear algebra (XLA) compiler to improve the performance of computing software. Our core design principle of JAXtronomy is to maintain an identical API to that of lenstronomy. The main JAX features utilized in JAXtronomy are just-in-time compilation, which can lead to significant reductions in execution time, and automatic differentiation, which allows for the implementation of gradient-based algorithms that were previously impossible. Additionally, JAX allows code to be run on GPUs or parallelized across CPU cores, further boosting the performance of JAXtronomy.

astronomy↗
DOE OSTI2024

Final Physics Design of Proton Improvement Plan-II at Fermilab

This paper presents the final physics design of the Proton Improvement Plan-II (PIP-II) at Fermilab, focusing on the linear accelerator (Linac) and its beam transfer line. We address the challenges in longitudinal and transverse lattice design, specifically targeting collective effects, parametric resonances, and space charge nonlinearities that impact beam stability and emittance control. The strategies implemented effectively mitigate space charge complexities, resulting in significant improvements in beam quality—evidenced by reduced emittance growth, lower beam halo, decreased loss, and better energy spread management. This comprehensive study is pivotal for the PIP-II project's success, providing valuable insights and approaches for future accelerator designs, especially in managing nonlinearities and enhancing beam dynamics.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗
DOE OSTI2024

RF and Mechanical Design of a 915 MHz SRF Cavity for Conduction-Cooled Cryomodules

Conduction-cooled SRF niobium cavities are being developed for use in compact, continuous-wave electron linear accelerators for a variety of industrial applications. A 915 MHz two-cell cavity has been designed to achieve an energy gain of 3.5 MeV. The design of the cell shape aims at minimizing the peak surface magnetic field. Field flatness is achieved by adjusting the length of the outer end half-cells. The higher-order mode analysis shows that absorbers are not required for a moderate beam current of 5 mA. One of the beam tubes has two side-ports for insertion of coaxial fundamental power couplers. The mechanical design and analysis were done to maintain a stress near or less than 15.5 MPa for all anticipated loading conditions. This is half the measured yield strength and is to provide relief from creep when cavity is evacuated and stored with outside atmospheric pressure.

Ciovati, Gianluigi↗
DOE OSTI2025

Real time heat load calculation software based on EPICS for Fermilab PIP-II CM tests

Fermilab has a project to improve the proton beam energy which is called PIP-II (the 2nd Proton Improvement Plan). There is a superconducting linear accelerator, LINAC, to improve the proton beam power and the LINAC consists of 5 types of cryomodules (CM), 1 HWR CM, 2 SSR1 CM, 4 SSR2 CM, LB650 CM, and HB650 CM. The prototypes of these cryomodules are being tested at Fermilab’s CryoModule Test Facility (CMTF). Heat load measurements are an important part of the prototype CM testing. The CMTF cryogenic control system was developed based on the ACNET (Accelerator Control NETwork) for CM testing for other projects, but the PIP-II cryogenic control system will be implemented using the Experimental Physics and Industrial Control System (EPICS). As part of the prototype CM testing campaign an EPICS based control system has been implemented at CMTF. This EPICS cryogenic control system includes real time heat load calculation software utilizing the Fortran implementation of Hepak. This paper details the real time heat load calculation software developed for the prototype CM testing including the first results from the HB 650 CM.

Yoon, S. [Fermilab]↗
DOE OSTI2025

Resistive Wall Simulations for the DARHT Multi-Pulse Test Line

The multi-pulse test line (MPTL) presently under T development at the Dual Axis Radiography Hydrodynamic Test (DARHT) facility may have several meters of drifting beam transport without external magnetic focusing field. The absence of external magnetic focusing is the worst case for growth of the resistive-wall instability. This instability is usually considered to be strictly a long-pulse (low-frequency) problem, but has been theoretically shown to couple the multiple pulses in a long pulse train, such as are expected to be the subject of experimentation on the MPTL. In this note, we explore the resistive wall instability in the MPTL parameter range using our LAMDA beam dynamics code. (LAMDA stands for Linear Accelerator Model for DARHT)

43 PARTICLE ACCELERATORS↗
DOE OSTI2025

Design and calculations for HWR Strongback

The PIP-II Superconductive Linac is a linear accelerator that provides the first stage of beam acceleration. The velocity increase is achieved through a sequence of different cryomodules, where all the cavities are aligned to form a continuous string. The cryomodule team is currently developing a spare for the HWR cryomodule. This spare will not be an exact replica of the existing one, but rather will be based on the SSR f650 cryomodule design created for PIP-II . Each cavity , magnet , and coupler form a unit, with a total of eight units per string. These components, together with additional equipment (such as piping , the thermal shield , and beamline interconnections ), are supported by the Strongback . The aim of this project is to develop a brand-new Strongback design for HWR cavities, and to perform the related analyses and calculations in order to meet the required specifications.

43 PARTICLE ACCELERATORS↗
DOE OSTI2026

Development of high throughput light-sheet fluorescence lifetime imaging microscopy for 3D functional imaging of metabolic pathways in plant and microorganisms (Final Technical Report)

This research program will enable new biochemical contrast in the nanosecond lifetime domain through use of the recently demonstrated electro-optic fluorescence lifetime imaging technique (EO-FLIM) for wide-field lifetime imaging. The Stanford/Stanford Linear Accelerator Center multidisciplinary collaboration -- physics, applied physics, and structural biology -- will develop a light-sheet fluorescence lifetime imaging microscope for functional studies of microbial and plant metabolic pathways and dynamic interactions between plants and microorganisms in the rhizosphere. The proposed approach overcomes the imaging time bottleneck associated with existing fluorescence lifetime imaging methods. Initial demonstrations have shown a factor of 100,000 improvement in photon throughput compared to existing methods. High photon efficiency allowed the first wide-field fluorescence lifetime imaging of single molecules. Recent work has improved the technique’s repetition rate to enable compatibility with mode-locked lasers and demonstrated the combination of wide-field fluorescence lifetime imaging with super-resolution localization microscopy, observations of single molecule dynamics, and observation of donor lifetime quenching in single-molecule imaging. These results were achieved on standard camera sensors and would not have been possible with other wide-field approaches. The throughput and photon economy of the EO-FLIM method enables new BER-relevant imaging opportunities. In particular, scanned single- and two-photon light-sheet excitation will be used to achieve volumetric imaging with time-domain contrast.

47 OTHER INSTRUMENTATION↗