Effect of the gas mixing technique on the production efficiency of ion beams extracted from an electron cyclotron resonance ion source

In this work the effect of gas mixing on the production efficiency of ion beams extracted from an ECR ion source has been studied with the JYFL 6.4 GHz electron cyclotron resonance ion source (ECRIS). It was found that the gas mixing affects strongly the confinement of ions in the plasma of the ECRIS. The information obtained can be used to minimize the consumption of expensive materials or isotopes and to reduce contamination of the plasma chamber. It was observed that the carbon contamination, which is built up when the MIVOC method is used could be decreased with the aid of the gas mixing technique. The best mixing gas for this purpose was found to be oxygen.

Experimental evidence on microwave induced electron losses from ECRIS plasma

The balance between warm and hot (>1 keV) electron density and their losses from the magnetic confinement system of an Electron Cyclotron Resonance Ion Source (ECRIS) plasma is considered to be one of the main factors determining the rate of the high charge state ion production. One of the key loss channels for heated electrons is thought to be induced by the injected microwaves. While this loss mechanism, referred to as rf-induced pitch angle scattering, has been studied theoretically and with computational tools, direct experimental evidence of its significance in minimum-B ECRIS plasmas remains limited. In this work, experimental evidence of microwave induced electron losses in the axial…

Experimental evidence on photo-assisted O$^-$ ion production from Al$_2$O$_3$ cathode in cesium sputter negative ion source

The production of negative ions in cesium sputter ion sources is generally considered to be a pure surface process. It has been recently proposed that ion pair production could explain the higher-than-expected beam currents extracted from these ion sources, therefore opening the door for laser-assisted enhancement of the negative ion yield. We have tested this hypothesis by measuring the effect of various pulsed diode lasers on the O$^-$ beam current produced from Al$_2$O$_3$ cathode of a cesium sputter ion source. It is expected that the ion pair production of O$^-$ requires populating the 5d electronic states of neutral cesium, thus implying that the process should be provoked only with s…

Double einzel lens extraction for the JYFL 14 GHz ECR ion source designed with IBSimu

In order to improve the performance of the JYFL 14 GHz electron cyclotron resonance ion source (ECRIS) and initiate low energy beam transport (LEBT) upgrade at the University of Jyvaskyla, Department of Physics (JYFL) accelerator laboratory, a new ion beam extraction system has been designed and installed. The development of the new extraction was performed with the ion optical code IBSimu, making it the first ECRIS extraction designed with the code. The measured performance of the new extraction is in good agreement with the simulations. Compared to the old extraction the new system provides improved beam quality, i.e. lower transverse emittance values and improved structure of beam profil…

Experimental evidence of E × B plasma rotation in a 2.45 GHz hydrogen discharge

An experimental observation of a rotating plasma structure in a 2.45 GHz microwave-driven hydrogen discharge is reported. The rotation is presumably produced by E × B drift. The formation of the rotating plasma structure is sensitive to the strength of the off-resonance static magnetic field. The rotation frequency is on the order of 10 kHz and is affected by the neutral gas pressure and applied microwave power.

Plasma instability in the afterglow of electron cyclotron resonance discharge sustained in a mirror trap

The work presented in this article is devoted to time-resolved diagnostics of non-linear effects observed during the afterglow plasma decay of a 14 GHz electron cyclotron resonance ion source operated in pulsed mode. Plasma instabilities that cause perturbations of the extracted ion current during the decay were observed and studied. It is shown that these perturbations are associated with precipitation of high energy electrons along the magnetic field lines and strong bursts of bremsstrahlung emission. The effect of ion source settings on the onset of the observed instabilities was investigated. Based on the experimental data and estimated plasma properties, it is assumed that the instabil…

The effect of gas mixing and biased disc voltage on the preglow transient of electron cyclotron resonance ion source

The effect of gas mixing and biased disc voltage on the preglow of electron cyclotron resonance ion source plasma has been studied with the AECR-U type 14 GHz ion source. It was found that gas mixing has a significant effect on the preglow. The extracted transient beam currents and efficiency of the heavier species increase, while the currents and efficiency of the lighter species decrease when gas mixing is applied. The effect of the biased disc was found to be pronounced in continuous operation mode in comparison to preglow. The data provide information on the time scales of the plasma processes explaining the effects of gas mixing and biased disc. The results also have implications on pr…

Time Evolution of High-Energy Bremsstrahlung and Argon Ion Production in Electron Cyclotron Resonance Ion-Source Plasma

Bremsstrahlung radiation measurement is one of the most commonly used plasma-diagnostics methods. Most of the bremsstrahlung measurements with electron cyclotron resonance ion sources (ECRISs) have been performed in continuous-operation mode yielding information only on the steady-state bremsstrahlung emission. This paper describes results of bremsstrahlung and argon ion-current measurements with the JYFL 14-GHz ECRIS operated in a pulsed mode. The bremsstrahlung radiation was studied as a function of neutral-gas pressure and radio frequency power. The timescale of ECRIS bremsstrahlung production is compared to ion-production timescale for different charge states of argon for the first time…

Diagnostic techniques of minimum-B ECR ion source plasma instabilities.

The performance of a minimum-B Electron Cyclotron Resonance Ion Source (ECRIS) is traditionally quantified by measuring the beam current and quality of the extracted ion beams of different charge state ions. The stability of the extracted ion beam currents has drawn more attention recently as the technology is pushing its limits toward higher ion charge states and beam intensities. The stability of the extracted beam is often compromised by plasma instabilities manifesting themselves as rapid oscillations of the beam currents in millisecond scale. This paper focuses on practical aspects of diagnostics techniques of the instabilities, showcases examples of instability-related diagnostics sig…

Electron–cyclotron–resonance plasma heating with broadband microwave radiation: Anomalous effects

Abstract Affects of microwave bandwidth on the high-charge-states of ion beams extracted from a conventional minimum- B -geometry ECR ion source are first demonstrated. The high-charge-state intensities, produced with broadband microwave radiation are observed to be factors ⩾2 than those produced with narrow bandwidth microwave radiation at the same power level.

Gyrotron-driven high current ECR ion source for boron-neutron capture therapy neutron generator

Abstract Boron-neutron capture therapy (BNCT) is a perspective treatment method for radiation resistant tumors. Unfortunately its development is strongly held back by a several physical and medical problems. Neutron sources for BNCT currently are limited to nuclear reactors and accelerators. For wide spread of BNCT investigations more compact and cheap neutron source would be much more preferable. In present paper an approach for compact D–D neutron generator creation based on a high current ECR ion source is suggested. Results on dense proton beams production are presented. A possibility of ion beams formation with current density up to 600 mA/cm 2 is demonstrated. Estimations based on obt…

Breakdown transient study of plasma distributions in a 2.45 GHz hydrogen discharge

Plasma distribution transients associated with the breakdown of a 2.45 GHz hydrogen discharge similar to high current microwave ion sources are studied by means of an ultra-fast frame image acquisition system in visible light range. Eight different plasma distributions have been studied by photographing the 2D projections of the discharge through a transparent plasma electrode. The temporal evolution of images in Balmer-alpha and Fulcher band wavelengths have been recorded associated to atomic and molecular excitation and ionization processes. Some unexpected plasma distributions transient behaviors during breakdown are reported.

Effect of electron cyclotron resonance ion source frequency tuning on ion beam intensity and quality at Department of Physics, University of Jyväskylä.

Ion beam intensity and quality have a crucial effect on the operation efficiency of the accelerator facilities. This paper presents the investigations on the ion beam intensity and quality after the mass separation performed with the Department of Physics, University of Jyvaskyla 14 GHz electron cyclotron resonance ion source by sweeping the microwave in the 14.05–14.13 GHz range. In many cases a clear variation in the ion beam intensity and quality as a function of the frequency was observed. The effect of frequency tuning increased with the charge state. In addition, clear changes in the beam structure seen with the beam viewer were observed. The results confirmed that frequency tuning ca…

Shape coexistence at the proton drip-line: First identification of excited states inPb180

Excited states in the extremely neutron-deficient nucleus {sup 180}Pb have been identified for the first time using the JUROGAM II array in conjunction with the RITU recoil separator at the Accelerator Laboratory of the University of Jyvaeskylae. This study lies at the limit of what is presently achievable with in-beam spectroscopy, with an estimated cross section of only 10 nb for the {sup 92}Mo({sup 90}Zr,2n){sup 180}Pb reaction. A continuation of the trend observed in {sup 182}Pb and {sup 184}Pb is seen, where the prolate minimum continues to rise beyond the N=104 midshell with respect to the spherical ground state. Beyond-mean-field calculations are in reasonable correspondence with the…

An Experimental Study of Waveguide Coupled Microwave Heating with Conventional Multicusp Negative Ion Source

Negative ion production with conventional multicusp plasma chambers utilizing 2.45 GHz microwave heating is demonstrated. The experimental results were obtained with the multicusp plasma chambers and extraction systems of the RFdriven RADIS ion source and the filament driven arc discharge ion source LIISA. A waveguide microwave coupling system, which is almost similar to the one used with the SILHI ion source, was used. The results demonstrate that at least one third of negative ion beam obtained with inductive RF-coupling (RADIS) or arc discharge (LIISA) can be achieved with 1 kW of 2.45 GHz microwave power in CW mode without any modification of the plasma chamber. The co-extracted electro…

Electron heating with broadband microwave radiation: A new method for improving the performances of conventional B-minimum electron cyclotron resonance ion sources

Abstract The charge-state enhancing effects of broadband microwave radiation are demonstrated by comparing the charge-state distributions and intensities of Arq+ ion beams, extracted from a conventional B-minimum geometry, 6.4 GHz ECR ion source, when operated with traveling-wave-tube (TWT) amplified microwave signals generated, respectively, from a “white” noise generator (WNG, bandwidth: 200 MHz) and a conventional narrow-bandwidth local oscillator (LO, bandwidth: ∼1.5 MHz). Clear enhancement (factors > 2) is obtained for high-charge-state Ar ion beam intensities, produced with broadband radiation, over those obtained with narrow-bandwidth radiation at the same power level. The high-charg…

The effect of magnetic field strength on the time evolution of high energy bremsstrahlung radiation created by an electron cyclotron resonance ion source

Abstract An electron cyclotron resonance (ECR) ion source is one of the most used ion source types for high charge state heavy ion production. In ECR plasma the electrons are heated by radio frequency microwaves in order to provide ionization of neutral gases. As a consequence, ECR heating also generates very high electron energies (up to MeV region) which can produce a vast amount of bremsstrahlung radiation causing problems with radiation shielding and heating superconducting cryostat of an ECR ion source. To gain information about the time evolution of the electron energies in ECR plasma radial bremsstrahlung measurements were performed. JYFL 14 GHz ECR ion source was operated in pulsed …

Hybrid simulation of electron cyclotron resonance heating

Electron Cyclotron Resonance (ECR) heating is a fundamentally important aspect in understanding the physics of Electron Cyclotron Resonance Ion Sources (ECRIS). Absorption of the radio frequency (RF) microwave power by electron heating in the resonance zone depends on many parameters including frequency and electric field strength of the microwave, magnetic field structure and electron and ion density profiles. ECR absorption has been studied in the past by e.g. modelling electric field behaviour in the resonance zone and its near proximity. This paper introduces a new ECR heating code that implements damping of the microwave power in the vicinity of the resonance zone, utilizes electron de…

Cooling of the plasma chamber for the AECR-U type electron cyclotron resonance ion source ARTEMIS

Abstract The temperature distribution inside the ECRIS plasma chamber has been studied using finite element analysis. The main goal of these studies was to find out the safest cooling design for the temperature sensitive permanent magnets. In ECR ion sources they are used to provide the hexapole field. Two different designs for the cooling of the magnets were investigated. The temperature distribution on the surface of the plasma electrode was also studied. With the aid of the cooling simulations the most efficient cooling for the new ECR ion source was found. As a result of which, safety and higher reliability of operation can be reached.

Influence of axial mirror ratios on the kinetic instability threshold in electron cyclotron resonance ion source plasma

International audience; Electron Cyclotron Resonance (ECR) ion source plasmas are prone to kinetic instabilities. The onset of the instabilities manifests as emission of microwaves, bursts of electrons expelled from the plasma volume, and the collapse of the extracted highly charged ion (HCI) currents. Consequently, the instabilities limit the HCI performance of ECR ion sources by limiting the parameter space available for ion source optimization. Previous studies have shown that the transition from stable to unstable plasma regime is strongly influenced by the magnetic field structure, especially the minimum field value inside the magnetic trap (Bmin). This work focuses to study the role o…

Effect of Ion Escape Velocity and Conversion Surface Material on H- Production

According to generally accepted models surface production of negative ions depends on ion escape velocity and work function of the surface. We have conducted an experimental study addressing the role of the ion escape velocity on H− production. A converter‐type ion source at Los Alamos Neutron Science Center was employed for the experiment. The ion escape velocity was affected by varying the bias voltage of the converter electrode. It was observed that due to enhanced stripping of H− no direct gain of extracted beam current can be achieved by increasing the converter voltage. The conversion efficiency of H− was observed to vary with converter voltage and follow the existing theories in qual…

Ionization efficiency studies with charge breeder and conventional electron cyclotron resonance ion source

Radioactive Ion Beams play an increasingly important role in several European research facility programs such as SPES, SPIRAL1 Upgrade, and SPIRAL2, but even more for those such as EURISOL. Although remarkable advances of ECRIS charge breeders (CBs) have been achieved, further studies are needed to gain insight on the physics of the charge breeding process. The fundamental plasma processes of charge breeders are studied in the frame of the European collaboration project, EMILIE, for optimizing the charge breeding. Important information on the charge breeding can be obtained by conducting similar experiments using the gas mixing and 2-frequency heating techniques with a conventional JYFL 14 …

A new plasma potential measurement instrument for plasma ion sources

A very efficient and fast instrument to measure the plasma potential of ion sources has been developed at the Department of Physics, University of Jyvaskyla (JYFL). The operating principle of this novel instrument is to apply a decelerating voltage into a mesh located in the beamline of the ion source. The plasma potential is determined by measuring the current at the grounded electrode situated behind the mesh as a function of the voltage. In this article, we will introduce the instrument and the first results. In the experiments, the instrument was connected to the beamline of the JYFL 6.4 GHz electron cyclotron resonance ion source. The plasma potential was measured with different source…

Oscillations of ECR ion source beam current along the beam transport of the JYFL K-130 cyclotron

A versatile measurement system has been developed to study the temporal characteristics of ion beams in millisecond time scale. The system is composed of data acquisition hardware and LabVIEW based measurement and analysis program. The measurement system and ion beam current oscillation results measured with a 14 GHz AECR-U type ion source at University of Jyv"askyl"a, Department of Physics (JYFL), are presented. It is shown that the ion beams exhibit periodic current fluctuations at frequencies from 100 Hz to 1.5 kHz with amplitudes ranging from 1 to 65 percent of the average beam current. It is argued that these oscillations originate from the ion source plasma since their characteristics…

First results with the yin-yang type electron cyclotron resonance ion source

Abstract Highly charged heavy-ion beams are often produced with Electron Cyclotron Resonance Ion Sources (ECRIS). The so-called conventional minimum-B ECRIS design includes two solenoid magnets and a multipole magnet (usually a hexapole). A minimum-B configuration can also be formed with “yin-yang” (“baseball”) type coils. Such a magnetic field configuration has been extensively tested in magnetic fusion experiments but not for the production of highly charged heavy ions. The application of the afore-mentioned coil structure to the production of multiply charged ion beams was studied. In this paper we present a design of a yin-yang type ion source known as the ARC-ECRIS and some preliminary…

The effect of plasma electrode collar structure on the performance of the JYFL 14GHz electron cyclotron resonance ion source

Abstract The influence of a so-called collar structure on the performance of the JYFL 14 GHz electron cyclotron resonance ion source (ECRIS) has been studied experimentally at the Department of Physics, University of Jyvaskyla (JYFL). The collar is a cylindrical structure extruding inwards from the plasma electrode. The collar length was varied between 5 and 60 mm. For some ion species a moderate performance improvement was achieved in terms of extracted beam current and transverse emittance up to 30 mm collar length. Longer collars resulted in a substantial performance decrease. Different collar materials, i.e. nonmagnetic stainless steel, aluminum and Al 2 O 3 , and a wide range of ion sp…

Beam current oscillations driven by cyclotron instabilities in a minimum-Belectron cyclotron resonance ion source plasma

Experimental observation of cyclotron instabilities in a minimum-B confined electron cyclotron resonance ion source plasma is reported. The instabilities are associated with strong microwave emission and a burst of energetic electrons escaping the plasma, and explain the periodic ms-scale oscillation of the extracted beam currents. Such non-linear effects are detrimental for the confinement of highly charged ions due to plasma perturbations at shorter periodic intervals in comparison with their production time. It is shown that the repetition rate of the periodic instabilities in oxygen plasmas increases with increasing magnetic field strength and microwave power and decreases with increasi…

Production of titanium ion beams in an ECR ion source

Abstract Intensive highly charged Ti ion beams were successfully produced in the 14 GHz ECR ion source at the Accelerator Laboratory, University of Jyvaskyla (JYFL). The Ti beams were produced using the MIVOC technique, i.e. by allowing the vapor of an organic compound containing titanium to diffuse into the ion source at room temperature. After optimizing the source parameters the intensity of the 48 Ti 11+ ion beam reached a value of 45 μA.

Microwave emission related to cyclotron instabilities in a minimum-Belectron cyclotron resonance ion source plasma

Electron cyclotron resonance ion sources (ECRIS) have been essential in the research and applications of nuclear physics over the past 40 years. They are extensively used in a wide range of large-scale accelerator facilities for the production of highly charged heavy ion beams of stable and radioactive elements. ECRISs are susceptible to kinetic instabilities due to resonance heating mechanism leading to anisotropic electron velocity distribution function. Instabilities of cyclotron type are a proven cause of frequently observed periodic bursts of 'hot' electrons and bremsstrahlung, accompanied with emission of microwave radiation and followed by considerable drop of multiply charged ions c…

Production and isobaric separation of 63Ni ions for determination of the 62Ni(n,γ)63Ni reaction cross section at stellar temperatures

Injected 1+ ion beam as a diagnostics tool of charge breeder ECR ion source plasmas

International audience; Charge breeder electron cyclotron resonance ion sources (CB-ECRIS) are used as 1+  →n+  charge multiplication devices of post-accelerated radioactive ion beams. The charge breeding process involves thermalization of the injected 1+  ions with the plasma ions in ion–ion collisions, subsequent ionization by electron impact and extraction of the n+  ions. Charge breeding experiments of 85Rb and 133Cs ion beams with the 14.5 GHz PHOENIX CB-ECRIS operating with oxygen gas demonstrate the plasma diagnostics capabilities of the 1+  injection method. Two populations can be distinguished in the m/q-spectrum of the extracted ion beams, the low (1+  and 2+) charge states repres…

Quasi-periodical kinetic instabilities in minimum-B confined plasma

We present the results of an experimental investigation of quasi-periodical kinetic instabilities exhibited by magnetically confined electron cyclotron resonance heated plasmas. The instabilities were detected by measuring plasma microwave emission, electron losses, and wall bremsstrahlung. The instabilities were found to be grouped into fast sequences of periodic plasma losses, separated by ∼100 µs between the bursts, followed by 1–10 ms quiescent periods before the next event. Increasing the plasma energy content by adjusting the plasma heating parameters, in particular the magnetic field strength, makes the instabilities more chaotic in the time domain. Statistical analysis reveals that …

Controlled turbulence regime of electron cyclotron resonance ion source for improved multicharged ion performance

Fundamental studies of excitation and non-linear evolution of kinetic instabilities of strongly nonequlibrium hot plasmas confined in open magnetic traps suggest new opportunities for fine-tuning of conventional electron cyclotron resonance (ECR) ion sources. These devices are widely used for the production of particle beams of high charge state ions. Operating the ion source in controlled turbulence regime allows increasing the absorbed power density and therefore the volumetric plasma energy content in the dense part of the discharge surrounded by the ECR surface, which leads to enhanced beam currents of high charge state ions. We report experiments at the ECR ion source at the JYFL accel…

Shape coexistence at the proton drip-line: First identification of excited states in 180Pb

Excited states in the extremely neutron-deficient nucleus, 180Pb, have been identified for the first time using the JUROGAM II array in conjunction with the RITU recoil separator at the Accelerator Laboratory of the University of Jyvaskyla. This study lies at the limit of what is presently achievable with in-beam spectroscopy, with an estimated cross-section of only 10 nb for the 92Mo(90Zr,2n)180Pb reaction. A continuation of the trend observed in 182Pb and 184Pb is seen, where the prolate minimum continues to rise beyond the N=104 mid-shell with respect to the spherical ground state. Beyond mean-field calculations are in reasonable correspondence with the trends deduced from experiment.

Method for estimating charge breeder ECR ion source plasma parameters with short pulse 1+ injection

A new method for determining plasma parameters from beam current transients resulting from short pulse 1+ injection into a Charge Breeder Electron Cyclotron Resonance Ion Source (CB-ECRIS) has been developed. The proposed method relies on few assumptions, and yields the ionisation times $1/n_e\left\langle\sigma v\right\rangle^{\text{inz}}_{q\to q+1}$, charge exchange times $1/n_0\left\langle\sigma v\right\rangle^{\text{cx}}_{q\to q-1}$, the ion confinement times $\tau^q$, as well as the plasma energy contents $n_e\left\langle E_e\right\rangle$ and the plasma triple products $n_e \left\langle E_e\right\rangle \tau^q$. The method is based on fitting the current balance equation on the extract…

Electron cyclotron resonance ion source plasma chamber studies using a network analyzer as a loaded cavity probe

A method and first results utilizing a network analyzer as a loaded cavity probe to study the resonance properties of a plasma filled electron cyclotron resonance ion source (ECRIS) plasma chamber are presented. The loaded cavity measurements have been performed using a dual port technique, in which two separate waveguides were used simultaneously. One port was used to ignite and sustain the plasma with a microwave source operating around 11 GHz and the other was used to probe the cavity properties with the network analyzer using a frequency range around 14 GHz. The first results obtained with the JYFL 14 GHz ECRIS demonstrate that the presence of plasma has significant effects on the reson…

A status report of the multipurpose superconducting electron cyclotron resonance ion source

Intense heavy ion beam production with electron cyclotron resonance (ECR) ion sources is a common requirement for many of the accelerators under construction in Europe and elsewhere. An average increase of about one order of magnitude per decade in the performance of ECR ion sources was obtained up to now since the time of pioneering experiment of R. Geller at CEA, Grenoble, and this trend is not deemed to get the saturation at least in the next decade, according to the increased availability of powerful magnets and microwave generators. Electron density above 1013 cm(-3) and very high current of multiply charged ions are expected with the use of 28 GHz microwave heating and of an adequate …

Neutron generator for BNCT based on high current ECR ion source with gyrotron plasma heating

BNCT development nowadays is constrained by a progress in neutron sources design. Creation of a cheap and compact intense neutron source would significantly simplify trial treatments avoiding use of expensive and complicated nuclear reactors and accelerators. D-D or D-T neutron generator is one of alternative types of such sources for. A so-called high current quasi-gasdynamic ECR ion source with plasma heating by millimeter wave gyrotron radiation is suggested to be used in a scheme of D-D neutron generator in the present work. Ion source of that type was developed in the Institute of Applied Physics of Russian Academy of Sciences (Nizhny Novgorod, Russia). It can produce deuteron ion beam…

Plasma distributions observed in a 2.45 GHz hydrogen discharge

The existence of various spatial distributions of hydrogen plasma in a pulsed 2.45 GHz microwave discharge is demonstrated. The data has been obtained through optical emission diagnostics utilizing an ultra-fast CCD camera system with multi-channel plate (MCP) intensifiers, and a wavelength-filtered photodiode recording temporal light emission signals of hydrogen atoms and molecules. It has been observed that the magnetic field topology and strength are determining the transitions between different plasma patterns and spectral saturation times while neutral gas pressure and microwave power show a weaker influence on the profiles but affect the emitted light intensity.

Design and Calculations for the New ECRIS at KVI

In this paper a brief description is given of the on‐going upgrade of the CAPRICE‐type ECRIS injector of the K=600 AGOR cyclotron at KVI. This upgrade is motivated by the new TRIμP program, which requires a significant increase of available beam intensity by up to two orders in magnitude. The upgrade follows the AECR design of the university of Jyvaskyla, which was originally pioneered at LBNL (USA). We will discuss the mechanical design and magnetic field calculations of the solenoidal and the permanent magnetic hexapole fields.

Stellar(n,γ)Cross Section ofNi62

The 62Ni(n,gamma)63Ni(t(1/2)=100+/-2 yr) reaction plays an important role in the control of the flow path of the slow neutron-capture (s) nucleosynthesis process. We have measured for the first time the total cross section of this reaction for a quasi-Maxwellian (kT=25 keV) neutron flux. The measurement was performed by fast-neutron activation, combined with accelerator mass spectrometry to detect directly the 63Ni product nuclei. The experimental value of 28.4+/-2.8 mb, fairly consistent with a recent calculation, affects the calculated net yield of 62Ni itself and the whole distribution of nuclei with 62<A<90 produced by the weak s process in massive stars.

Production of a magnesium ion beam using the MIVOC method

Abstract We report the successful production of multiply charged Mg ion beams at the Jyvaskyla ECRIS using a magnesium compound, magnesocene. The compound was placed in a separate vacuum chamber connected to the second stage of the 6.4 GHz JYFL-ECRIS. From there the vapour of the compound was allowed to diffuse into the source at room temperature. After a brief optimizing procedure the intensity of the 24 Mg 5+ beam was measured to be 11.8 eμA.

Ion beam development for the needs of the JYFL nuclear physics programme

The increased requirements towards the use of higher ion beam intensities motivated us to initiate the project to improve the overall transmission of the K130 cyclotron facility. With the facility the transport efficiency decreases rapidly as a function of total beam intensity extracted from the JYFL ECR ion sources. According to statistics, the total transmission efficiency is of the order of 10% for low beam intensities (I(total)or =0.7 mA) and only about 2% for high beam intensities (I(total)1.5 mA). Requirements towards the use of new metal ion beams for the nuclear physics experiments have also increased. The miniature oven used for the production of metal ion beams at the JYFL is not …

The role of rf-scattering in high-energy electron losses from minimum-B ECR ion source

The measurement of the axially lost electron energy distribution escaping from a minimum-B electron cyclotron resonance ion source in the range of 4-800 keV is reported. The experiments have revealed the existence of a hump at 150-300 keV energy, containing up to 15% of the lost electrons and carrying up to 30% of the measured energy losses. The mean energy of the hump is independent of the microwave power, frequency and neutral gas pressure but increases with the magnetic field strength, most importantly with the value of the minimum-B field. Experiments in pulsed operation mode have indicated the presence of the hump only when microwave power is applied, confirming that the origin of the …

Method for estimating charge breeder ECR ion source plasma parameters with short pulse 1+ injection of metal ions

Abstract A new method for determining plasma parameters from beam current transients resulting from short pulse 1+ injection of metal ions into a charge breeder electron cyclotron resonance ion source has been developed. The proposed method relies on few assumptions, and yields local values for the ionisation times 1 / n e σ v q → q + 1 inz , charge exchange times 1 / n 0 σ v q → q − 1 cx , the ion confinement times τ q , as well as estimates for the minimum plasma energy contents n e E e and the plasma triple products n e E e τ q . The method is based on fitting the current balance equation on the extracted beam currents of high charge state ions, and using the fitting coefficients to dete…

The first results with the new JYFL 14 GHz ECR ion source

Abstract A new 14 GHz ECR ion source has been built for the Accelerator Laboratory in the Department of Physics (JYFL), University of Jyvaskyla. This source belongs to the family of the LBNL AECR-U-based ECR ion sources. The operation during the first four months has shown that the new ion source performs well and is able to produce intensive highly charged ion beams. For example, 145 μA of O7+ ion beam was recorded. The production of iron and boron ion beams was tested using the MIVOC method. The 56Fe11+ ion beam current reached a value of 115 μA. The intensities of 11B3+ and 11B5+ ion beams were 235 and 52 μA, respectively. This iron beam intensity is the second highest and the boron beam…

3D-simulation studies of the modified magnetic multipole structure for an electron cyclotron resonance ion source

Experiments have shown that efficient operation of an electron cyclotron resonance ion source requires that the magnetic field fulfills the so-called scaling laws. In most cases the requirements for the radial magnetic field, i.e. the strength of the magnetic multipole are the most difficult to satisfy. This is due to the fact that the multipole is usually produced from permanent magnets, which makes a value of 1.3 T feasible. One possible solution to increase the multipole field is the so-called Modified MultiPole Structure (JYFL-MMPS). This new idea makes it possible to increase the magnetic field at the places where the plasma flux is in contact with the plasma chamber wall. In this arti…

High current proton source based on ECR discharge sustained by 37.5 GHz gyrotron radiation

Formation of hydrogen ion beams with high intensity and low transverse emittance is one of the key challenges in accelerator technology. Present work is devoted to experimental investigation of proton beam production from dense plasma (Ne > 1013 cm−3) of an ECR discharge sustained by 37.5 GHz, 100 kW gyrotron radiation at SMIS 37 facility at IAP RAS. The anticipated advantages of the SMIS 37 gasdynamic ion source over the current state-of-the-art proton source technology based on 2.45 GHz hydrogen discharges are described. Experimental result obtained with different extraction configurations i.e. single- and multi-aperture systems are presented. It was demonstrated that ultra bright proton …

The effects of beam line pressure on the beam quality of an electron cyclotron resonance ion source

The results of a series of measurements studying the possibility to use neutral gas feeding into the beam line as a way to improve the quality of the heavy ion beams produced with an electron cyclotron resonance ion source (ECRIS) are presented. Significant reduction of the beam spot size and emittance can be achieved with this method. The observed effects are presumably due to increased space charge compensation degree of the ion beam in the beam line section between the ion source and the analyzing magnet. This is the region where the neutral gas was injected. It is shown that the effects are independent of the ion source tuning. Transmission measurements through the beam line and K-130 c…

Metal ion beams from an ECR ion source using volatile compounds

Abstract A new MIVOC method (Metal Ions from Volatile Compounds) at an ECR ion source gives a means to produce highly charged metal ion beams at room temperature conditions. Chemical compounds containing metallic atoms are utilized. The compound has to fulfill the two basic requirements: Vapour pressure of the compound is relatively high at room temperature. Evaporation and diffusion of the compound into the source take place without dissociation of the molecule. Up to present metal ion beams from iron and nickel compounds have been produced. The maximum currents of 56Fe9+ and 58Ni10+ from natural elements were 23.9 μA and 18.7 μA, respectively. First measurements have demonstrated the abil…

HIISI, New 18 GHZ ECRIS for the JYFL Accelerator Laboratory

At the end of 2013 the Academy of Finland granted an infrastructure funding for the JYFL Accelerator Laboratory in order to increase beam intensities for the international user community. The primary objective is to construct a new high performance ECR ion source, HIISI (Heavy Ion Ion Source Injector), for the K130 cyclotron. Using room temperature magnets the HIISI has been designed to produce about the same magnetic field configuration as the superconducting ECRIS SUSI at NSCL/MSU for 18 GHz operation. An innovative structure will be used to maximize the radial confinement and demagnetization safety margin of the permanent magnets. The sextupole magnet is separated and insulated from the …

A study of VUV emission and the extracted electron-ion ratio in hydrogen and deuterium plasmas of a filament-driven H−/D− ion source

Vacuum ultraviolet (VUV) emission diagnostics for studying differences of electron impact processes in hydrogen and deuterium plasmas are presented. The method is applied to study a filament driven multicusp arc discharge negative ion source by comparing the VUV-emission intensities of different emission bands and extracted currents of H−/D− ions and electrons. It was found that the ratio of coextracted electrons to extracted ions is four times higher for deuterium than for hydrogen. No significant differences of the VUV-spectra or volumetric rates of ionization, excitation, production of high vibrational states, and dissociation were found between the plasmas of the two isotopes. The volum…

Experimental study of hydrogen plasma breakdown in a 2.45 GHz microwave discharge

Temporal evolution of microwave-plasma coupling, vacuum ultraviolet (VUV) light emission and plasma electron temperature and density is reported for a 2.45GHz microwave hydrogen discharge pulsed at 50Hz. Directional couplers, a VUV spectrometer and a Langmuir probe are used for the diagnostics of the plasma breakdown. A 5‐10 µs transient peak of light emission exceeding the steady-state intensity by a factor of 3.3 is observed in coincidence with an abrupt drop in the microwave electric field. Observed light emission intensities combined with cross section data indicate that the electron temperature during the breakdown transient exceeds the steady-state value of 4‐6eV by a factor 3, which …

αdecay studies of very neutron-deficient francium and radium isotopes

Very neutron-deficient francium and radium isotopes have been produced in fusion evaporation reactions using $^{63}\mathrm{Cu}$ and $^{65}\mathrm{Cu}$ ions on $^{141}\mathrm{Pr}$ targets and $^{36}\mathrm{Ar}$ ions on $^{170}\mathrm{Yb}$ targets. The gas-filled recoil separator RITU was employed to collect the fusion products and to separate them from the scattered beam. The activities were implanted into a position-sensitive silicon detector after passing through a gas-counter system. The isotopes were identified using spatial and time correlations between the implants and decays. Two new \ensuremath{\alpha} decaying radium isotopes, $^{201}\mathrm{Ra}$ and $^{202}\mathrm{Ra}$, were identi…

The role of seed electrons on the plasma breakdown and preglow of electron cyclotron resonance ion source

The 14 GHz Electron Cyclotron Resonance Ion Source at University of Jyväskylä, Department of Physics (JYFL) has been operated in pulsed mode in order to study the plasma breakdown and preglow effect. It was observed that the plasma breakdown time and preglow characteristics are affected by seed electrons provided by a continuous low power microwave signal at secondary frequency. Sustaining low density plasma during the off-period of high power microwave pulses at the primary frequency shifts the charge state distribution of the preglow transient toward higher charge states. This could be exploited for applications requiring fast and efficient ionization of radioactive elements as proposed f…

First intense isotopic titanium-50 beam using MIVOC method

Abstract An organometallic compound isotopically enriched in titanium-50 has been successfully used for the first time to produce intense ion beams with an ECR ion source by means of the MIVOC method. After some fruitful tests performed with compounds produced at IPHC Strasbourg with natural titanium, enriched organometallic titanium compound was produced successfully, beam extracted from ECR ion sources and accelerated through a K = 130 MeV cyclotron to an energy of 242 MeV. This isotopic 50 Ti 11 + beam was used for the first time in three week-experiment with typical MIVOC stable operating conditions. After optimization, up to 19.4 μA of titanium-50 in charge state 11 + could be extracte…

The effect of rf pulse pattern on bremsstrahlung and ion current time evolution of an ECRIS.

Time-resolved helium ion production and bremsstrahlung emission from JYFL 14 GHz ECRIS is presented with different radio frequency pulse lengths. rf on times are varied from 5 to 50 ms and rf off times from 10 to 1000 ms between different measurement sets. It is observed that the plasma breakdown occurs a few milliseconds after launching the rf power into the plasma chamber, and in the beginning of the rf pulses a preglow transient is seen. During this transient the ion beam currents are increased by several factors compared to a steady state situation. By adjusting the rf pulse separation the maximum ion beam currents can be maintained during the so-called preglow regime while the amount o…

Diagnostics of highly charged plasmas with multicomponent 1+ ion injection

We establish multicomponent 1+ injection into a charge breeder electron cyclotron resonance ion source and an associated computational procedure as a noninvasive probe of the electron density ne, average electron energy ⟨Ee⟩, and the characteristic times of ionization, charge exchange, and ion confinement of stochastically heated, highly charged plasma. Multicomponent injection allows refining the ne, ⟨Ee⟩ ranges, reducing experimental uncertainty. Na/K injection is presented as a demonstration. The ⟨Ee⟩ and ne of a hydrogen discharge are found to be 600+600−300eV and 8+8−3×1011cm−3, respectively. The ionization, charge exchange, and confinement times of high charge state alkali ions are on…

Studies of plasma breakdown and electron heating on a 14 GHz ECR ion source through measurement of plasma bremsstrahlung

Temporal evolution of plasma bremsstrahlung emitted by a 14?GHz electron cyclotron resonance ion source (ECRIS) operated in pulsed mode is presented in the energy range 1.5?400?keV with 100??s resolution. Such a high temporal resolution together with this energy range has never been measured before with an ECRIS. Data are presented as a function of microwave power, neutral gas pressure, magnetic field configuration and seed electron density. The saturation time of the bremsstrahlung count rate is almost independent of the photon energy up to 100?keV and exhibits similar characteristics with the neutral gas balance. The average photon energy during the plasma breakdown is significantly highe…