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RLA (Recirculating Linear Accelerator) accelerating cavity improvements

Smith, David L.

In the Recirculating Linear Accelerator, we will inject a 10-kA to 20-kA electron beam, and then focus and guide it with an IFR plasma channel, which is created with a low energy electron beam. The REB will be transported through a closed racetrack or a spiral beam line to be re-accelerated by the ringing waveform of dielectric cavities. By adding more accelerating cavities along the beam line, high energies can be achieved. Experiments are in progress to study IFR beam transport issues. A new injector is needed for beam re- acceleration experiments. We are presently installing this new REB injector which will-provide a higher amplitude ({approximately}4 MV), longer duration ({approximately}40-ns FWHM), more rectangularly shaped({approximately}25-ns full width at 90% peak) waveform and a colder beam than were achievable with the previous 1.5-MV injector. The resultant constant beam energy can be more efficiently matched the guiding IFR plasma channel in the beam line and to the turning section magnetic fields. We are now developing new cavities that produce accelerating voltage pulses with improved waveform flatness, width, and amplitudes that do not suffer unacceptable degradation over the first four ringing periods. This effort requires network solver and electrostatic field stress analysis computer codes, and a scaled test model to compare actual waveforms to those predicted by the simulations. 10 refs., 9 figs.