Cockcroft Institute, Warrington, Cheshire, United Kingdom
The University of Liverpool, Liverpool, United Kingdom
The Laser Applications at Accelerators network (LA≥NET) was selected for funding within the European Union's 7th Framework Programme. During its 4 year duration the project has successfully trained 19 Fellows and organized numerous events that were open to the wider laser and accelerator communities. The network linked research into lasers and accelerators to develop advanced particle sources, new accelerating schemes, and in particular beyond state-of-the-art beam diagnostics. This contribution summarizes the research results in laser-based beam diagnostics for accelerators and light sources. It discusses the achievable resolution of laser-based velocimeters to measure the velocity of particle beams, the resolution limits of bunch shape measurements using electro-optical crystals, position resolution of laser wire scanners, and limits in energy measurements using Compton backscattering at synchrotron light sources. Finally, it also provides a summary of past and future events organized by the network and shows how an interdisciplinary research program can provide comprehensive training to a cohort of early career researchers.
CFEL, Hamburg, Germany
MIT, Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA
Next-generation photon-science facilities such as X-ray free-electron lasers (X-FELs)* and intense-laser beamline centers** are emerging world-wide with the goal of generating sub-fs X-ray pulses with unprecedented brightness to capture ultrafast chemical and physical phenomena with sub-atomic spatiotemporal resolution. The only obstacle preventing this long-standing scientific dream to come true is a high- precision timing distribution system*** synchronizing various microwave and optical sub-sources across multi-km distances which is required for seeded X-FELs and attosecond pump-probe experiments. Here, we present, for the first time, a synchronous laser-microwave network that will enable attosecond precision photon science facilities. By developing new ultrafast metrological timing devices and carefully balancing fiber nonlinearities and fundamental noise contributions, we have achieved timing stabilization of a 4.7 km fiber network with 580 attosecond precision over 52 hours. Furthermore, we have realized a complete laser-microwave network incorporating two mode-locked lasers and one microwave source with total 950 attosecond jitter integrated from 1 microsecond to 18 hours.
*J. Stohr, LCLS-II Conceptual Design Report. No. SLAC-R-978. (SLAC, 2011).
**G. Mourou, T. Tajima, Optics & Photonics News 22, 47 (2011).
***J. Kim, et al., Nat. Photonics 2(12), 733-736 (2008).
Cockcroft Institute, Warrington, Cheshire, United Kingdom
The University of Liverpool, Liverpool, United Kingdom
The Optimization of Medical Accelerators (OMA) is the aim of a new European Training Network that has received 4 ME of funding within the Horizon 2020 Programme of the European Union. OMA joins universities, research centers and clinical facilities with industry partners to address the challenges in treatment facility design and optimization, numerical simulations for the development of advanced treatment schemes, and beam imaging and treatment monitoring. This contribution presents an overview of the network's research into beam diagnostics and imaging. This includes investigations into applying detector technologies originally developed for high energy physics experiments (such as VELO, Medipix) for medical applications; integration of prompt gamma cameras in the clinical workflow; identification of optimum detector configurations and materials for high resolution spectrometers for proton therapy and radiography; ultra-low charge beam current monitors and diagnostics for cell studies using proton beams. It also summarizes the network-wide training program consisting of Schools, Topical Workshops and Conferences that will be open to the wider medical and accelerator communities.
Cockcroft Institute, Warrington, Cheshire, United Kingdom
The University of Liverpool, Liverpool, United Kingdom
A comprehensive set of beam diagnostics is key to the successful operation and optimization of essentially any accelerator. The oPAC project received 6 M€ of funding within the EU's 7th Framework Programme. This has allowed to successfully train 23 Fellows since 2011. The network joins more than 40 institutions from all around the world, including research centers, universities and private companies. One of the project's largest work packages covers research in beam diagnostics. This includes advanced instrumentation for synchrotron light sources and medical accelerators, enhanced beam loss monitoring technologies, ultra-low emittance beam size diagnostics, diagnostics for high intensity beams, as well as the development of electronics for beam position monitors. This contribution presents an overview of the research outcomes from the diagnostics work package and the demonstrated performance of each monitor. It also shows how collaborative research helps achieving beyond state-of-the-art solutions and acts as an ideal basis for researcher training. Finally, an overview of the scientific events the network has been organizing for the wider accelerator community is given.
CERN, Geneva, Switzerland
SLAC, Menlo Park, California, USA
The LCLS2 is a CW superconducting LINAC driven X-ray free electron laser under construction at SLAC. The high beam rate of up to 1MHz, and ability to deliver electrons to multiple undulators and beam dumps, results in a beam diagnostics and control system that requires real time data processing in programmable logic. The SLAC Technical Innovation Directorate has developed a common hardware and firmware platform for beam instrumentation based on the ATCA crate format. The FPGAs are located on ATCA carrier cards, front ends and A-D / D-A are on AMC cards that are connected to the carriers by high speed serial JESD links. External communication is through the ATCA backplane, with interlocks and low frequency components on the ATCA RTM. This platform is used for a variety of high speed diagnostics including stripline and cavity BPMs.
CERN, Geneva, Switzerland