Monte Carlo simulation of a collimation system for low-energy beamline of ELI–NP Gamma Beam System

Abstract

ELI–nuclear physics (NP) Gamma Beam System (GBS) is an intense and monochromatic gamma beam source based on inverse Compton interaction, currently being built in Bucharest, Romania. The gamma beam produced, with energy ranging from 0.2 to 20MeV, energy bandwidth 0.5% and flux of about 108photons/s, will be devoted to investigate a broad range of applications such as nuclear physics, astrophysics, material science and life sciences. The radiation produced by an inverse Compton interaction is not intrinsically monochromatic. In fact, the energy of the photons produced is related to the emission angle, therefore the energy bandwidth can be modified adjusting the collimation of the gamma beam. In order to define the optimal layout and evaluate the performance of a collimation system for the ELI–NP–GBS low-energy beamline (0.2–3.5MeV), a detailed Monte Carlo simulation activity has been carried out. The simulation, using Geant4 and MCNPX codes, included the transport of the gamma beam from the interaction point to the experimental area passing through vacuum pipes, vacuum chambers, collimation system and relative shielding. The effectiveness of the collimation system, in obtaining the required energy distribution and avoiding the contamination due to secondary radiation production, was evaluated. Also, the background radiation generated by collimation and the shielding layout have been studied.