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At least 973 records · Page 54
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2021

An adaptive masking method for beam halo measurement by a digital micro mirror device

We report that in high intensity particle beams, irregularities in cathode emission, scattering effects, dark current and space charge forces can lead to a common phenomenon termed beam halo with associated emittance growth, beam loss and overall beam quality degradation. It is of fundamental interest and practical importance to precisely monitor such beam halo, which could offer valuable insights into the experimental strategy for the suppression of this undesired feature. A Digital Micro mirror Device (DMD) is a computer-controlled micro-electrical-mechanical system that contains a compact array of physically independent reflective mirrors. Using a standard DMD, we come up with an adaptive masking method for halo measurement, which demonstrates superior robustness and efficiency comparing to the conventional approaches as confirmed by simulation and experimental results. Our development includes an integrated package of hardware, software and a graphic user interface (GUI) that is robust and portable and can be applied as a beam halo diagnostic for electron guns or radiating charged particle beams in general.

43 PARTICLE ACCELERATORS↗
DOE OSTI2025

First-principles study of structural, elastic, electronic, transport properties, and dielectric breakdown of Cs 2 Te photocathode

The pursuit to operate photocathodes at high accelerating gradients to increase brightness of electron beams is gaining interests within the accelerator community, particularly for applications such as free electron lasers (FEL) and compact accelerators. Cesium telluride (Cs 2 Te) is a widely used photocathode material and it is presumed to offer resilience to higher gradients because of its wider band gap compared to other semiconductors. Despite its advantages, crucial material properties of Cs 2 Te remain largely unknown both in theory and experiments. In this study, we employ first-principles calculations to provide detailed structural, elastic, electronic and transport properties of Cs 2 Te. It is found that Cs 2 Te has an intrinsic mobility of 20 cm 2 /Vs for electrons and 2.0 cm 2 /Vs for holes at room temperature. The low mobility is primarily limited by the strong polar optical phonon scattering. Cs 2 Te also exhibits ultralow lattice thermal conductivity of 0.2 W/(m*K) at room temperature. Based on the energy gain/loss balance under external field and electron–phonon scattering, we predict that Cs 2 Te has a dielectric breakdown field in the range from ~ 60 to ~ 132 MV/m at room temperature dependent on the doping level of Cs 2 Te. Our results are crucial to advance the understanding of applicability of Cs 2 Te photocathodes for high-gradient operation.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2020

Laser-driven collisionless shock acceleration of ions from near-critical plasmas

Here, this paper overviews experimental and numerical results on acceleration of narrow energy spread ion beams by an electrostatic collisionless shockwave driven by 1 μm (Omega EP) and 10 μm (UCLA Neptune Laboratory) lasers in near critical density CH and He plasmas, respectively. Shock waves in CH targets produced high-energy ~50 MeV protons (ΔE/E of ≤30%) and 314 MeV C 6+ ions (ΔE/E of ≤10%). Observation of acceleration of both protons and carbon ions to similar velocities is consistent with reflection of particles off the moving potential of a shock front. For shocks driven by CO 2 laser in a gas jet, ~30 MeV peak in He ion spectrum was detected. Particle-in-cell simulations indicate that regardless of the target further control over its density profile is needed for optimization of accelerated ion beams in part of energy spread, yield and maximum kinetic energy.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗
NASA NTRS1996

Investigation of ion-beam machining methods for replicated x-ray optics

The final figuring step in the fabrication of an optical component involves imparting a specified contour onto the surface. This can be expensive and time consuming step. The recent development of ion beam figuring provides a method for performing the figuring process with advantages over standard mechanical methods. Ion figuring has proven effective in figuring large optical components. The process of ion beam figuring removes material by transferring kinetic energy from impinging neutral particles. The process utilizes a Kaufman type ion source, where a plasma is generated in a discharge chamber by controlled electric potentials. Charged grids extract and accelerate ions from the chamber. The accelerated ions form a directional beam. A neutralizer outside the accelerator grids supplies electrons to the positive ion beam. It is necessary to neutralize the beam to prevent charging workpieces and to avoid bending the beam with extraneous electro-magnetic fields. When the directed beam strikes the workpiece, material sputters in a predicable manner. The amount and distribution of material sputtered is a function of the energy of the beam, material of the component, distance from the workpiece, and angle of incidence of the beam. The figuring method described here assumes a constant beam removal, so that the process can be represented by a convolution operation. A fixed beam energy maintains a constant sputtering rate. This temporally and spatially stable beam is held perpendicular to the workpiece at a fixed distance. For non-constant removal, corrections would be required to model the process as a convolution operation. Specific figures (contours) are achieved by rastering the beam over the workpiece at varying velocities. A unique deconvolution is performed, using series-derivative solution developed for the system, to determine these velocities.

Drueding, Thomas W.↗
DOE OSTI2021

Terawatt attosecond x-ray source driven by a plasma accelerator

Plasma accelerators can generate ultra-high-brightness electron beams that open the door to light sources with a smaller physical footprint and properties un-achievable with conventional accelerator technology. In this paper, we show that electron beams from Plasma WakeField Accelerators can generate few-cycle coherent tunable soft x-ray pulses with TW peak power and a duration of tens of attoseconds, an order of magnitude more powerful, shorter, and with better stability than state-of-the-art X-ray Free Electron Lasers (XFELs). Such a light source would significantly enhance the ability to experimentally investigate electron dynamics on ultrafast timescales, having a broad-ranging impact across multiple scientific fields. Rather than starting from noise as in typical XFELs, the x-ray emission in this approach is driven by coherent radiation from a pre-bunched, high peak current electron beam of attosecond duration. This relaxes the restrictive tolerances that have hindered progress toward utilizing plasma accelerators as coherent x-ray drivers thus far, presenting a new paradigm for advanced accelerator light source applications.

43 PARTICLE ACCELERATORS↗
DOE OSTI2020

Application of radiochromic gel dosimetry to commissioning of a megavoltage research linear accelerator for small–field animal irradiation studies

To develop and implement an efficient and accurate commissioning procedure for small-field static beam animal irradiation studies on an MV research linear accelerator (Linatron-M9) using radiochromic gel dosimetry. The research linear accelerator (Linatron-M9) is a 9 MV linac with a static fixed collimator opening of 5.08 cm diameter. Lead collimators were manually placed to create smaller fields of 2 × 2 cm 2 , 1 × 1 cm 2 , and 0.5 × 0.5 cm 2 . Relative dosimetry measurements were performed, including profiles, percent depth dose (PDD) curves, beam divergence, and relative output factors using various dosimetry tools, including a small volume ionization chamber (A14), GAFCHROMIC™ EBT3 film, and Clearview gel dosimeters. The gel dosimeter was used to provide a 3D volumetric reference of the irradiated fields. The Linatron profiles and relative output factors were extracted at a reference depth of 2 cm with the output factor measured relative to the 2 × 2 cm 2 reference field. Absolute dosimetry was performed using A14 ionization chamber measurements, which were verified using a national standards laboratory remote dosimetry service. Absolute dosimetry measurements were confirmed within 1.4% (k = 2, 95% confidence = 5%). The relative output factor of the small fields measured with films and gels agreed with a maximum relative percent error difference between the two methods of 1.1 % for the 1 × 1 cm 2 field and 4.3 % for the 0.5 × 0.5 cm 2 field. These relative errors were primarily due to the variability in the collimator positioning. The measured beam profiles demonstrated excellent agreement for beam size (measured as FWHM), within approximately 0.8 mm (or less). Film measurements were more accurate in the penumbra region due to the film’s finer resolution compared with the gel dosimeter. Following the van Dyk criteria, the PDD values of the film and gel measurements agree within 11% in the buildup region starting from 0.5 cm depth and within 2.6 % beyond maximum dose and into the fall-off region for depths up to 5 cm. The 2D beam profile isodose lines agree within 0.5 mm in all regions for the 0.5 × 0.5 cm 2 and the 1 × 1 cm 2 fields and within 1 mm for the larger field of 2 × 2 cm 2 . The 2D PDD curves agree within approximately 2% of the maximum in the typical therapy region (1–4 cm) for the 1 × 1 cm 2 and 2 × 2 cm 2 and within 5% for the 0.5 × 0.5 cm 2 field. This work provides a commissioning process to measure the beam characteristics of a fixed beam MV accelerator with detailed dosimetric evaluation for its implementation in megavoltage small animal irradiation studies. Radiochromic gel dosimeters are efficient small-field relative dosimetry tools providing 3D dose measurements allowing for full representation of dose, dosimeter misalignment corrections and high reproducibility with low inter-dosimeter variability. Altogether, radiochromic gels are valuable for fast, full relative dosimetry commissioning in comparison to films for application in high-energy small-field animal irradiation studies.

62 RADIOLOGY AND NUCLEAR MEDICINE↗
DOE OSTI2025

Plasma gradient effect on direct laser acceleration

The transfer of a high-intensity laser pulse energy to a high-energy electron beam via the direct laser acceleration mechanism is shown to be significantly enhanced through control of the plasma density gradient. Experiments performed using the OMEGA EP facility's high-intensity beams altered the plasma density and gradients by changing the Mach number and the angle of the gas-jet nozzle to the laser axis. When a long density gradient at the rear of the target is used, the total high-energy electron number measured was enhanced by 4.5 times compared to a shorter rear gradient. Complementary two-dimensional simulations, which follow the laser field evolution and the corresponding electron dynamics, strongly support the key trends observed in the experiment. The effect is twofold, the long density gradient provides the longest acceleration distance while it minimizes the formation of the sheath field as the electron beam exits into the vacuum. This study shows the importance of tailoring the plasma density.

Laser plasma interactions↗
DOE OSTI2020

Time-resolved measurement of electron beam neutralization

An intense relativistic electron beam (IREB) incident on a target generates positive ions by stimulated and thermal desorption of adsorbed gas, and subsequent electron impact ionization. These ions are accelerated upstream by the beam space-charge potential, thereby partially neutralizing the beam. If there is enough neutralization, the repulsive space-charge force can be overcome by the magnetic-pinch force due to the beam current. This so-called ion focusing is responsible for time dependent defocusing of the radiographic source spot. Since a single monolayer of adsorbed gas has a surface density of about 10 15 /cm 2 and is formed in about one second in a one micro-Torr vacuum, there is always enough adsorbed gas to make this a concern in our accelerators. Therefore, time-resolved measurements of the degree of neutralization are valuable for better understanding of this process with an eye to mitigation for improvement of our radiography. Moreover, these measurements would aid quantification of uncertainties due to these effects when using invasive beam diagnostics, such as OTR imaging targets.

43 PARTICLE ACCELERATORS↗
DOE OSTI2023

Overview on Analyses of Dose Rates During RID Parts Removal/Exchange

One of the most irradiated Spallation Neutron Source (SNS) accelerator components is ring injection dump (RID), which is located downstream of the accumulator ring injection section. The unstripped and only partially stripped H- beam is discarded in the injection into the accumulator ring and is redirected to the RID, which is about 5% of the full beam current. According to the accelerator operation plan, the beam stop and the window assemblies of the existing RID will be removed and replaced, when they have reached their end-of-life. This procedure, which includes multiple steps, is scheduled to take place during facility maintenance period in January 2023.In order to support job planning and meet ALARA requirements during removal and exchange of the components, dose rates for each stage of exchange operation are calculated.

Popova, Irina I.↗
DOE OSTI2025

Beam results for the new super-conducting booster at Jefferson Lab

The performance results of a new super-conducting booster for the CEBAF injector at Jefferson Lab, could be of interest for other similar electron injectors. A recent addition of this new booster has provided us the ability to achieve a more adiabatic acceleration and therefore an improvement to the beam dynamics and beam brightness. It has also simplified the design and operation of the section of the injector responsible for accelerating the electron beam from a few hundred keV to several MeV (typically 6.7 MeV). The addition of the new booster was part of an upgrade to the CEBAF injector to improve the beam quality for future physics experiments with high sensitivity to beam quality. The booster consists of two cavities: a 2-cell cavity followed by a 7-cell cavity. This combination allows for a wide range of input electron beam energies, from 130 keV to more than 300 keV. In fact, during the last year, the booster was successfully operated with 140,180, and 200 keV input beam energies as the electron gun was being upgraded. This paper describes the new booster, presents beam optics data results from different beam studies, commissioning, and the physics quality beam operation.

Accelerator Physics↗
DOE OSTI2020

Design and Analysis of a Double Wall, Water Cooled Window for Accelerator Based Mo-99 Production

The electron accelerator based Mo-99 production technique requires the use of Rhodotrons to generate 38 MeV, 6.32 mA pulsed electron beams. The introduction of the pulsed beam structure has introduced fatigue concerns in the vacuum-helium windows that did not exist previously for electron beam production via linear accelerators. Previous analysis has shown that temperature fluctuations of approximately 100°C above and below the steady state operating temperature of ~500°C will occur within the windows. A water cooled window will eliminate this concern by reducing the primary mechanical stress due to the 300-psig helium pressure load as well as the secondary thermally induced stress. Although a water cooled window was considered years ago, the complexities of adding an additional water line was unattractive until now. A double wall, water cooled window has been designed and analyzed for this reason. The water cooled window design is shown to decrease the helium-side window temperature to as low as 125°C, while the vacuum-side window is maintained at 161°C at a water flow rate of 3.2 GPM. These low steady state temperatures reduce the thermal stress of the helium-side window significantly. Also, the primary mechanical stress has been reduced by roughly 50% due to the reduced pressure gradient across the helium-side window (150-psig water and 300-psig helium). Considering a Mo-99 production loss of roughly 1%, the water cooled window is a drastic improvement over the previous helium cooled designs and should be greatly considered for future upgrades and redesign.

43 PARTICLE ACCELERATORS↗
NASA NTRS2003

Measurement of Charged Particle Interactions in Spacecraft and Planetary Habitat Shielding Materials

Accurate models of health risks to astronauts on long-duration missions outside the geomagnetosphere will require a full understanding of the radiation environment inside a spacecraft or planetary habitat. This in turn requires detailed knowledge of the flux of incident particles and their propagation through matter, including the nuclear interactions of heavy ions that are a part of the Galactic Cosmic Radiation (GCR). The most important ions are likely to be iron, silicon, oxygen, and carbon. Transport of heavy ions through complex shielding materials including self-shielding of tissue modifies the radiation field at points of interest (e.g., at the blood-forming organs). The incident flux is changed by two types of interactions: (1) ionization energy loss, which results in reduced particle velocity and higher LET (Linear Energy Transfer); and (2) nuclear interactions that fragment the incident nuclei into less massive ions. Ionization energy loss is well understood, nuclear interactions less so. Thus studies of nuclear fragmentation at GCR-like energies are needed to fill the large gaps that currently exist in the database. These can be done at only a few accelerator facilities where appropriate beams are available. Here we report results from experiments performed at the Brookhaven National Laboratory s Alternating Gradient Synchrotron (AGS) and the Heavy Ion Medical Accelerator in Chiba, Japan (HIMAC). Recent efforts have focused on extracting charge-changing and fragment production cross sections from silicon beams at 400, 600, and 1200 MeV/nucleon. Some energy dependence is observed in the fragment production cross sections, and as in other data sets the production of fragments with even charge numbers is enhanced relative to those with odd charge numbers. These data are compared to the NASA-LaRC model NUCFRG2. The charge-changing cross section data are compared to recent calculations using an improved model due to Tripathi, which accurately predicts the observed (slight) energy dependence. An additional set of data will be presented from an analysis of shielding material performance in the 1 GeV/nucleon iron beam at the AGS. A wide variety of candidate materials for spacecraft construction, as well as elemental targets, have been placed in this beam and their effects on transmitted dose and dose equivalent measured. The results support a prediction by J. Wilson et al. that hydrogen-loaded materials give the greatest dose reduction per unit mass.

Zeitlin, Cary J.↗
DOE OSTI2020

Impedance localization and identification

The beam coupling impedance represents one of the sources of potential beam instabilities in particle accelerators. The localization of large coupling impedance sources is therefore very important in order to focus the efforts for mitigation measures when these are needed. In this work we will focus on the common methods adopted to quantify the transverse impedance of a particle accelerator both from the global and the local point of views. This activity can be performed in both bunched and coasting beams following different strategies.

43 PARTICLE ACCELERATORS↗
DOE OSTI2021

Wafer-based charged particle accelerator, wafer components, methods, and applications

A wafer-based charged particle accelerator includes a charged particle source and at least one RF charged particle accelerator wafer sub-assembly and a power supply coupled to the at least one RF charged particle accelerator wafer sub-assembly. The wafer-based charged particle accelerator may further include a beam current-sensor. The wafer-based charged particle accelerator may further include at least a second RF charged particle accelerator wafer sub-assembly and at least one ESQ charged particle focusing wafer. Fabrication methods are disclosed for RF charged particle accelerator wafer sub-assemblies, ESQ charged particle focusing wafers, and the wafer-based charged particle accelerator.

Lal, Amit↗
DOE OSTI2024

Infrastructure-scale additive manufacturing using mobile electron accelerators

A method and system for in situ cross-linking of polymers, Bitumen, and other materials to produce arbitrary functional or ornamental three-dimensional features using electron beams provided by mobile accelerators comprises defining a desired pattern for imparting on a target area, mapping the target area, defining at least one discrete voxel in the target area according to the desired pattern to be imparted on the target area, assigning an irradiation value to each of the at least one discrete voxels, and delivering a dose of irradiation to each of the at least one discrete voxels according to the assigned irradiation value.

Sauers, Aaron↗
DOE OSTI2026

Experimental longitudinal emittance manipulation using laser-based photoionization in the Fermilab Linac

A series of simulations and beam studies were conducted at Fermilab’s linear accelerator to evaluate the effectiveness of longitudinal emittance control via laser-induced photoionization. While similar laser techniques have been employed at Fermilab to enhance injection and extraction efficiency into the Booster, the work presented here focuses on extending these methods to bunch-by-bunch manipulation. This approach utilizes fine-scale correction of the H- bunches’ longitudinal spatial distribution. In theory, loosely confined particles in longitudinal phase space contribute to emittance growth during acceleration. By selectively removing these outlying particles through laser scraping (H- + γ → H + e-), this growth can be reduced. This report presents experimental results from both symmetric and asymmetric longitudinal scraping of H⁻ bunches in the Fermilab linac, which were subsequently injected into Booster, and evaluates the broader applicability of this method for future high-intensity accelerator operations.

Landon, Parker [Boston U.; Fermilab]↗
DOE OSTI2023

Concept of a polarized positron source for CEBAF

This thesis focuses on the development of polarized and unpolarized positron beams for the future experimental pro- gram of hadronic physics at the Thomas Jefferson National Accelerator Facility (JLab). The primary challenge is to produce high-duty-cycle and high-intensity polarized positron beams. The JLab positron source, which is based on the PEPPo (Polarized Electrons for Polarized Positrons) technique, aims to use a high intensity (1 mA) and highly polarized (90%) continuous electron beam of moderate energy (120 MeV) to produce either a low intensity (>50 nA), highly polarized (60%) positron beam or a high intensity (>1 ?A), unpolarized positron beam. The optimization of the layout and performance of the positron source is examined in this thesis. The source is designed with a specialized second injector to generate, transport, accelerate, and shape positron beams. It is compatible with acceleration at the Continuous Electron Beam Accelerator Facility (CEBAF), and the investigation results are presented in this document.

Habet, Sami↗
DOE OSTI2020

Electron Ion Collider Machine Protection System: On the necessity of the MPS abort system for Rapid Cycling Synchrotron

The Electron Ion Collider (EIC) accelerator complex includes multiple high-energy high-power accelerators [1]. Operation of such a complex is associated with numerous dangers of possible damage to the equipment. The EIC machine protection system (MPS) scope is to protect the components of each accelerator from damage by the beam. The EIC MPS design, commissioning and operation is closely interconnected with the protection of various accelerator subsystems, such as RF-system, cryogenics, vacuum system etc. Yet, the primary goal of the MPS is to protect the EIC accelerators from the possible damage caused by electron and proton beams.

43 PARTICLE ACCELERATORS↗