Author: Jaussi, M.
Paper Title Page
MOPC054 The LHC RF System - Experience with Beam Operation 202
 
  • P. Baudrenghien, M. E. Angoletta, T. Argyropoulos, L. Arnaudon, J. Bento, T. Bohl, O. Brunner, A.C. Butterworth, E. Ciapala, F. Dubouchet, J. Esteban Muller, D.C. Glenat, G. Hagmann, W. Höfle, D. Jacquet, M. Jaussi, S. Kouzue, D. Landre, J. Lollierou, P. Maesen, P. Martinez Yanez, T. Mastoridis, J.C. Molendijk, C. Nicou, J. Noirjean, G. Papotti, A.V. Pashnin, G. Pechaud, J. Pradier, J. Sanchez-Quesada, M. Schokker, E.N. Shaposhnikova, D. Stellfeld, J. Tückmantel, D. Valuch, U. Wehrle, F. Weierud
    CERN, Geneva, Switzerland
 
  The LHC RF system commissioning with beam and physics operation for 2010 and 2011 are presented. It became clear in early 2010 that RF noise was not a lifetime limiting factor: the crossing of the much feared 50 Hz line for the synchrotron frequency did not affect the beam. The broadband LHC RF noise is reduced to a level that makes its contribution to beam diffusion in physics well below that of Intra Beam Scattering. Capture losses are also under control, at well below 0.5%. Longitudinal emittance blow-up, needed for ramping of the nominal intensity single bunch, was rapidly commissioned. In 2011, 3.5 TeV/beam physics has been conducted with 1380 bunches at 50 ns spacing, corresponding to 55% of the nominal current. The intensity per bunch (1.3 ·1011 p) is significantly above the nominal 1.15 ·1011. By August 2011 the LHC has accumulated more than 2 fb-1 integrated luminosity, well in excess of the 1 fb-1 target for 2011.  
 
TUPZ010 Longitudinal Emittance Blow-up in the LHC 1819
 
  • P. Baudrenghien, A.C. Butterworth, M. Jaussi, T. Mastoridis, G. Papotti, E.N. Shaposhnikova, J. Tückmantel
    CERN, Geneva, Switzerland
 
  The LHC relies on Landau damping for longitudinal stability. To avoid decreasing the stability margin at high energy, the longitudinal emittance must be continuously increased during the acceleration ramp. Longitudinal blow-up provides the required emittance growth. The method was implemented through the summer of 2010. We inject band-limited RF phase-noise in the main accelerating cavities during the whole ramp of about 11 minutes. Synchrotron frequencies change along the energy ramp, but the digitally created noise tracks the frequency change. The position of the noise-band, relative to the nominal synchrotron frequency, and the bandwidth of the spectrum are set by pre-defined constants, making the diffusion stop at the edges of the demanded distribution. The noise amplitude is controlled by feedback using the measurement of the average bunch length. This algorithm reproducibly achieves the programmed bunch length of about 1.2 ns (4 σ) at flat top with low bunch-to-bunch scatter and provides a stable beam for physics coast.