University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway
UCLA, Los Angeles, California, USA
SLAC, Menlo Park, California, USA
TUB, Beijing, People's Republic of China
MPI, Muenchen, Germany
We present the first results from experimental studies of the electron hose instability in the plasma-wakefield acceleration experiments at FACET. Theory and PIC simulations of an electron beam as it travels through a plasma indicate that hosing may lead to a significant distortion of the transverse phase space. The FACET dump line is equipped with a Cherenkov light based spectrometer which can resolve transverse motion as a function of beam energy. We compare the predictions from simulations and theory to the experimental results obtained.
SLAC, Menlo Park, California, USA
The FACET (Facility for Advanced aCcelerator Experimental Tests) facility at SLAC has been under Construction since summer 2010. Its goal is to produce ultrashort and transversely small bunches of very high intensity (20kA peak current) to facilitate advanced acceleration experiments like PWFA and DLA. In June of 2011 the first electron beam was brought into the newly constructed bunch-compression chicane. Commissioning work included restarting the linac and damping ring, verifying hardware, establishing a good beam trajectory, verifying the optics of the chicane, commissioning diagnostic devices for transverse and longitudinal bunch size, and tuning up the beam size and bunch compression. Running a high-intensity beam through the linac without BNS damping and with large energy spread is a significant challenge. Optical aberrations as well as wakefields conspire to increase beam emittance and the bunch compression is quite sensitive to details of the beam energy and orbit, not unlike what will be encountered in a linear-collider final-focusing system. In this paper we outline the steps we took while commissioning as well as the challenges encountered and how they were overcome.
SLAC, Menlo Park, California, USA
The Facility for Accelerator science and Experimental Tests (FACET) at SLAC provides a high peak current, sub-ps bunched beam that is ideal for THz photon generation via coherent transition radiation. This paper presents preliminary characterization of the THz pulses generated by FACET electron beam. A one-micron thick Ti foil has been inserted into the beam path and the radiated photons collected. Michelson spectroscopy yields frequency content spanning from 0.25 THz to 2.3 THz and peaked at around 0.5 THz. Multiple scans at different bunch compression show a monotonic increase of the peak radiation frequency as the electron bunch gets shorter. Using the Kramers-Kronig relation, the temporal profile of the THz pulse is reconstructed from the power spectrum indicating a ~4 picosecond main pulse followed by a long oscillating tail due to the water absorption lines and detector response. Knife-edge scans measure a 4.4 mm x 4.8 mm transverse spot size at the focal point of the THz optical path. The total collected energy per pulse is 0.69 mJ measured by a Joulemeter. Fitting this total energy to the spatiotemporal profile of the THz pulse yields peak e-field amplitude of 1.5 MV/cm.
SLAC, Menlo Park, California, USA
The Facility for Advanced Accelerator and Experimental Tests (FACET) at the SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory is designed to deliver a beam with a transverse spot size on the order of 10 μm x 10 μm in a new beamline constructed at the two kilometer point of the SLAC linac. Commissioning the beamline requires mitigating alignment errors and their effects, which can be significant and result in spot sizes orders of magnitude larger. Sextupole and quadrupole alignment errors in particular can introduce errors in focusing, steering, and dispersion which can result in spot size growth, beta mismatch, and waist movement. Alignment errors due to static misalignments, mechanical jitter, energy jitter, and other physical processes can be analyzed to determine the level of accuracy and precision that the beamline requires. It is important to recognize these effects and their tolerances in order to deliver a beam as designed.
SLAC, Menlo Park, California, USA
FACET (Facility for Advanced Accelerator Experimental Tests) is a new User Facility at SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory. The first User Run started in spring 2012 with 20 GeV, 3 nC electron beams. The facility is designed to provide short (20 um) bunches and small (20 um wide) spot sizes, producing uniquely high power beams. FACET supports studies from many fields but in particular those of Plasma Wakefield Acceleration and Dielectric Wakefield Acceleration. The creation of drive and witness bunches and shaped bunch profiles is possible with "Notch" Collimation. FACET is also a source of THz radiation for material studies. Positrons will be available at FACET in future user runs. We present the User Facility and the available tools and opportunities for future experiments.
MPI, Muenchen, Germany
USC, Los Angeles, California, USA
SLAC, Menlo Park, California, USA
UCLA, Los Angeles, California, USA
IPFN, Lisbon, Portugal
* N. Kumar et al., Phys. Rev. Lett. 104, 255003 (2010).
** J. Vieira et al., submitted (2011).
SLAC, Menlo Park, California, USA
UCLA, Los Angeles, California, USA
When a positron beam enters a plasma, plasma electrons are drawn in toward the beam axis, creating a region of extremely large charge density with complicated, nonlinear fields. Few analytic solutions exist to describe these fields, and this necessitates the use of simulations to model positron beam and plasma interactions. This presentation should cover recent work on positron PWFA simulations using the QuickPIC* particle-in-cell code. I will discuss the computational challenges associated with positron PWFA and specific applications of the simulations for future experimental tests at the FACET user facility at SLAC.
* C. Huang et al., "QuickPIC: A highly efficient particle-in-cell code for modeling wakefield acceleration in plasmas," J. Comp. Phys. 217, 658 (2006).