Neutralized Transport Experiment Research Articles

Ferroelectric plasma source for heavy ion beam space charge neutralization

Plasmas are a source of unbound electrons for charge neutralizing intense heavy ion beams to allow them to focus to a small spot size and compress their axial pulse length. The plasma source should be able to operate at low neutral pressures and without strong externally applied electric or magnetic fields. To produce 1 m-long plasma columns, sources based upon ferroelectric ceramics with large dielectric coefficients are being developed. The sources utilize the ferroelectric ceramic BaTiO 3 to form metal plasma. The drift tube inner surface of the Neutralized Drift Compression Experiment (NDCX) will be covered with ceramic material, and high voltage (∼7 kV) will be applied between the drift tube and the front surface of the ceramics. A prototype ferroelectric source, 20 cm in length, has produced plasma densities of 5×10 11 cm −3. It was integrated into the Neutralized Transport Experiment (NTX), and successfully charge neutralized the K + ion beam. A 1 m-long source comprised of five 20-cm-long sources has been tested. Simply connecting the five sources in parallel to a single pulse forming network power supply yielded non-uniform performance due to the time-dependent nature of the load that each of the five plasma sources experiences. Other circuit combinations have been considered, including powering each source by its own supply. The 1-m-long source has now been successfully characterized, producing relatively uniform plasma over the 1 m length of the source in the mid-10 10 cm −3 density range. This source will be integrated into the NDCX device for charge neutralization and beam compression experiments.

Neutralized drift compression experiments with a high-intensity ion beam

To create high-energy density matter and fusion conditions, high-power drivers, such as lasers, ion beams, and X-ray drivers, may be employed to heat targets with short pulses compared to hydro-motion. Both high-energy density physics and ion-driven inertial fusion require the simultaneous transverse and longitudinal compression of an ion beam to achieve high intensities. We have previously studied the effects of plasma neutralization for transverse beam compression. The scaled experiment, the Neutralized Transport Experiment (NTX), demonstrated that an initially un-neutralized beam can be compressed transversely to ∼1 mm radius when charge neutralization by background plasma electrons is provided. Here, we report longitudinal compression of a velocity-tailored, intense, neutralized 25 mA K + beam at 300 keV. The compression takes place in a 1–2 m drift section filled with plasma to provide space-charge neutralization. An induction cell produces a head-to-tail velocity ramp that longitudinally compresses the neutralized beam, enhances the beam peak current by a factor of 50 and produces a pulse duration of about 3 ns. The physics of longitudinal compression, experimental procedure, and the results of the compression experiments are presented.

Final focus system for high intensity beams

The neutralized transport experiment (NTX) at the Heavy Ion Fusion Virtual National Laboratory is exploring the performance of neutralized final-focus systems for high perveance heavy ion beams. The final-focus scenario in a heavy ion fusion driver consists of several large aperture quadrupole magnets followed by a drift section in which the beam space charge is neutralized by a plasma. This beam is required to hit a millimeter-sized target spot at the end of the drift section. The objective of the NTX experiments and associated theory and simulations is to study the various physical mechanisms that determine the final spot size (radius ${r}_{s}$) at a given distance ($f$) from the end of the last quadrupole. In a fusion driver, $f$ is the standoff distance required to keep the chamber wall and superconducting magnets properly protected. The NTX final quadrupole focusing system produces a converging beam at the entrance to the neutralized drift section where it focuses to a small spot. The final spot is determined by the conditions of the beam entering the quadrupole section, the beam dynamics in the magnetic lattice, and the plasma neutralization dynamics in the drift section. The main issues are the control of emittance growth due to high order fields from magnetic multipoles and image fields. In this paper, we will describe the theoretical and experimental aspects of the beam dynamics in the quadrupole lattice, and how these physical effects influence the final beam size. In particular, we present theoretical and experimental results on the dependence of final spot size on geometric aberrations and perveance.

Comparison of experimental data and three-dimensional simulations of ion beam neutralization from the Neutralized Transport Experiment

The Neutralized Transport Experiment at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory has been designed to study the final focus and neutralization of high perveance ion beams [E. Henestroza, S. Eylon, P. Roy, S. Yu, A. Anders, F. Bieniosek, W. Greenway, B. Logan, R. MacGill, D. Shuman et al., Phys. Rev. ST-Accel. Beams 7, 083501 (2004)]. Preformed plasmas in the last meter before the target of the scaled experiment provide a source of electrons which neutralize the ion current and prevent the space-charge-induced spreading of the beam spot. Neutralized Transport Experiment physics issues are discussed and experimental data are analyzed and compared with three-dimensional (3D) particle-in-cell simulations. Along with detailed target images, 4D phase-space data at the entrance of the neutralization region have been acquired. These data are used to provide a more accurate beam distribution with which to initialize the simulation. Previous treatments have used various idealized beam distributions which lack the deta...

Electron effects in the Neutralized Transport Experiment (NTX)

The Neutralized Transport Experiment (NTX) at the Heavy Ion Fusion Virtual National Laboratory is exploring the performance of neutralized final focus systems for high-perveance heavy ion beams. To focus a high-intensity beam to a small spot requires a high-brightness beam. In the NTX experiment, a potassium ion beam of up to 400 keV and 80 mA is generated in a Pierce-type diode. At the diode exit, an aperture with variable opening provides the capability to vary the beam perveance. The beam is transported through four quadrupole magnets to a distance of 2.5 m. The beam can be neutralized and focused using a MEVVA plasma plug and a RF plasma source. We shall report on the measurement of the electron effects and the ways to mitigate the effects. Furthermore, we shall present the results of EGUN calculations consistent with the measurements effects of the electrons.

Development of a 1-m plasma source for heavy ion beam charge neutralization

Highly ionized plasmas are being employed as a medium for charge neutralizing heavy ion beams in order to focus to a small spot size. Calculations suggest that plasma at a density of 1–100 times the ion beam density and at a length ∼0.1–1 m would be suitable for achieving a high level of charge neutralization. A radio frequency (RF) source was constructed at the Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory (PPPL) in support of the joint Neutralized Transport Experiment (NTX) at the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL) to study ion beam neutralization. Pulsing the source enabled operation at pressures ∼10 −6 Torr with plasma densities of 10 11 cm −3. Near 100% ionization was achieved. The plasma was 10 cm in length, but future experiments require a source 1 m long. The RF source does not easily scale to the length. Consequently, large-volume plasma sources based upon ferroelectric ceramics are being considered. These sources have the advantage of being able to increase the length of the plasma and operate at low neutral pressures. The source will utilize the ferroelectric ceramic BaTiO 3 to form metal plasma. A 1 m long section of the drift tube inner surface of NTX will be covered with ceramic. A high voltage (∼1–5 kV) is applied between the drift tube and the front surface of the ceramic by placing a wire grid on the front surface. Plasma densities of 10 12 cm −3 and neutral pressures ∼10 −6 Torr are expected. A test stand to produce 20 cm long plasma is being constructed and will be tested before a 1 m long source is developed.

Neutralized transport experiment

Experimental details on providing active neutralization of high brightness ion beam have been demonstrated for Heavy Ion Fusion program. A K + beam was extracted from a variable–perveance injector and transported through 2.4 m long quadrupole lattice for final focusing. Neutralization was provided by a localized cathode arc plasma plug and a RF volume plasma system. Effects of beam perveance, emittance, convergence focusing angle, and axial focusing position on neutralization have been investigated. Good agreement has been observed with theory and experiment throughout the study.

Electron-beam diagnostic for space-charge measurement of an ion beam

A nonperturbing electron-beam diagnostic system for measuring the charge distribution of an ion beam is developed for heavy ion fusion beam physics studies. Conventional diagnostics require temporary insertion of sensors into the beam, but such diagnostics stop the beam, or significantly alter its properties. In this diagnostic a low energy, low current electron beam is swept transversely across the ion beam; the measured electron-beam deflection is used to infer the charge density profile of the ion beam. The initial application of this diagnostic is to the neutralized transport experiment (NTX), which is exploring the physics of space-charge-dominated beam focusing onto a small spot using a neutralizing plasma. Design and development of this diagnostic and performance with the NTX ion beamline is presented.

Design and characterization of a neutralized-transport experiment for heavy-ion fusion

In heavy-ion inertial-confinement fusion systems, intense beams of ions must be transported from the exit of the final-focus magnet system through the fusion chamber to hit spots on the target with radii of about 2 mm. For the heavy-ion-fusion power-plant scenarios presently favored in the U.S., a substantial fraction of the ion-beam space charge must be neutralized during this final transport. The most effective neutralization technique found in numerical simulations is to pass each beam through a low-density plasma after the final focusing. To provide quantitative comparisons of these theoretical predictions with experiment, the Virtual National Laboratory for Heavy Ion Fusion has completed the construction and has begun experimentation with the neutralized-transport experiment. The experiment consists of three main sections, each with its own physics issues. The injector is designed to generate a very high-brightness, space-charge-dominated potassium beam, while still allowing variable perveance by a beam aperturing technique. The magnetic-focusing section, consisting of four pulsed quadrupoles, permits the study of magnet tuning, as well as the effects of phase-space dilution due to higher-order nonlinear fields. In the final section, the converging ion beam exiting the magnetic section is transported through a drift region with plasma sources for beam neutralization, and the final spot size is measured under various conditions of neutralization. In this paper, we discuss the design and characterization of the three sections in detail and present initial results from the experiment.

Progress in heavy ion fusion research

The U.S. Heavy Ion Fusion program has recently commissioned several new experiments. In the High Current Experiment [P. A. Seidl et al., Laser Part. Beams 20, 435 (2003)], a single low-energy beam with driver-scale charge-per-unit-length and space-charge potential is being used to study the limits to transportable current posed by nonlinear fields and secondary atoms, ions, and electrons. The Neutralized Transport Experiment similarly employs a low-energy beam with driver-scale perveance to study final focus of high perveance beams and neutralization for transport in the target chamber. Other scaled experiments—the University of Maryland Electron Ring [P. G. O’Shea et al., accepted for publication in Laser Part. Beams] and the Paul Trap Simulator Experiment [R. C. Davidson, H. Qin, and G. Shvets, Phys. Plasmas 7, 1020 (2000)]—will provide fundamental physics results on processes with longer scale lengths. An experiment to test a new injector concept is also in the design stage. This paper will describe the goals and status of these experiments, as well as progress in theory and simulation. A proposed future proof-of-principle experiment, the Integrated Beam Experiment, will also be described.

ECR plasma source for heavy ion beam charge neutralization

Highly ionized plasmas are being considered as a medium for charge neutralizing heavy ion beams in order to focus beyond the space-charge limit. Calculations suggest that plasma at a density of 1–100 times the ion beam density and at a length ∼0.1–2 m would be suitable for achieving a high level of charge neutralization. An Electron Cyclotron Resonance (ECR) source has been built at the Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory (PPPL) to support a joint Neutralized Transport Experiment (NTX) at the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL) to study ion beam neutralization with plasma. The ECR source operates at 13.6 MHz and with solenoid magnetic fields of 1–10 gauss. The goal is to operate the source at pressures ∼10−6 Torr at full ionization. The initial operation of the source has been at pressures of 10−4–10−1 Torr. Electron densities in the range of 108 to 1011 cm−3 have been achieved. Low-pressure operation is important to reduce ion beam ionization. A cusp magnetic field has been installed to improve radial confinement and reduce the field strength on the beam axis. In addition, axial confinement is believed to be important to achieve lower-pressure operation. To further improve breakdown at low pressure, a weak electron source will be placed near the end of the ECR source. This article also describes the wave damping mechanisms. At moderate pressures (> 1 mTorr), the wave damping is collisional, and at low pressures (< 1 mTorr) there is a distinct electron cyclotron resonance.

Overview of theory and modeling in the heavy ion fusion virtual national laboratory

This article presents analytical and simulation studies of intense heavy ion beam propagation, including the injection, acceleration, transport and compression phases, and beam transport and focusing in background plasma in the target chamber. Analytical theory and simulations that support the High Current Experiment (HCX), the Neutralized Transport Experiment (NTX), and the advanced injector development program, are being used to provide a basic understanding of the nonlinear beam dynamics and collective processes, and to develop design concepts for the next-step Integrated Beam Experiment (IBX), an Integrated Research Experiment (IRE), and a heavy ion fusion driver. Three-dimensional nonlinear perturbative simulations have been applied to collective instabilities driven by beam temperature anisotropy, and to two-stream interactions between the beam ions and any unwanted background electrons; three-dimensional particle-in-cell simulations of the 2-MV electrostatic quadrupole (ESQ) injector have clarified the influence of pulse rise time; analytical studies and simulations of the drift compression process have been carried out; syntheses of a four-dimensional particle distribution function from phase-space projections have been developed; and studies of the generation and trapping of stray electrons in the beam self-fields have been performed. Particle-in-cell simulations, involving preformed plasma, are being used to study the influence of charge and current neutralization on the focusing of the ion beam in NTX and in a fusion chamber.