Electric field studies of a 2 MeV electrostatic energy analyzer

Abstract

An energy analyzer based on the Proca and Green parallel-plate design is being developed for use with the 2 MeV heavy ion beam probe on TEXT. In a departure from the conventional configuration, guard ring electrodes will not be used. Instead, a shaped top plate will provide for comparable, or improved, uniformity of the analyzer electric field region. To quantify this effect, and to characterize the electrostatic field, numerical solution methods have been utilized. Simulations have included effects of top plate shape, wire screens, vacuum chamber design, and dielectric support structures. The modeling has permitted us to design an analyzer electrode structure that is an integral part of a uniquely shaped vacuum vessel. The design electric field is 20 kV/cm with less than 1% error in uniformity within the parallel plate region. To examine the electric field structure experimentally, a quarter-scale prototype analyzer has been constructed and tested. The electric field characteristics are examined by varying the path of a heavy ion beam through the analyzer and examining the resulting analyzer performance. A simulated vacuum wall can be positioned to examine the effects of different vessel configurations and to determine the sensitivity of the analyzer to this boundary condition. The experimental results show excellent agreement with the numerically predicted fields and confirm the validity of the shaped top plate electrode concept.