Ion Effects in the Cornell ERL High Intensity Photoinjector

Abstract

We present our first measurements of trapped ions in the Cornell energy recovery linac (ERL) photoinjector. During high intensity operation, ions become trapped inside of the electric potential generated by the electron beam and oscillate transversely with a characteristic frequency. At high beam currents, electron beam-ion interactions result in excessive radiation, primarily due to beam losses and bremsstrahlung. However, by shaking the beam at the trapped ion’s oscillation frequency, we are able to drive a resonance that severely reduces or eliminates this radiation. This both confirms the viability of beam shaking as an ion mitigation strategy inside high intensity injectors, and allows us to measure the trapped ion oscillation frequencies indirectly. Experimental data for a beam energy of 5 MeV, a bunch repetition rate of 1.3 GHz, and beam currents up to 20 mA, as well as simulations to describe our data and the beam shaking principle are presented.