Ion Beam Transport Simulations for the 1.7 MV Tandem Accelerator at the Michigan Ion Beam Laboratory

Abstract

The Michigan Ion Beam Laboratory houses a 1.7 MV tandem accelerator. For many years this accelerator was configured to run with three ion sources: a TORoidal Volume Ion Source (TORVIS), a Duoplasmatron source and a Sputter source. In this article we describe an application we have created using the SIMION® code to simulate the trajectories of ion beams produced with these sources through the accelerator. The goal of this work is to have an analytical tool to understand the effect of each electromagnetic component on the ion trajectories. This effect is shown in detailed drawings. Each ion trajectory simulation starts at the aperture of the ion source and ends at the position of the target. Using these simulations, new accelerator operators or users quickly understand how the accelerator system works. Furthermore, these simulations allow analysis of modifications in the ion beam optics of the accelerator by adding, removing or replacing components or changing their relative positions.