CERN Accelerating science

Article
Title	A Novel Laser Ionized Rb Plasma Source for Plasma Wakefield Accelerators
Author(s)	Öz, Erdem (Munich, Max Planck Inst.) ; Batsch, Fabian (Munich, Max Planck Inst.) ; Muggli, Patric (Munich, Max Planck Inst.)
Publication	2014
Number of pages	3
In:	5th International Particle Accelerator Conference, Dresden, Germany, 15 - 20 Jun 2014, pp.TUPME073
DOI	10.18429/JACoW-IPAC2014-TUPME073
Subject category	Accelerators and Storage Rings
Accelerator/Facility, Experiment	CERN AWAKE
Abstract	A proton driven plasma wakefield accelerator* is to be conducted at CERN by the AWAKE collaboration. Externally injected electrons are accelerated in a large gradient ( GeV/m) wakefield. The large gradient is achieved by resonant formation of the wakefield by a train of micro-bunches. Transverse modulation of a long ( 12 cm) proton bunch by the self modulation instability** creates these plasma wavelength size ( 1 mm) micro-bunches. This resonant mechanism brings a strict requirement on the plasma density uniformity, namely % 0.2, in order for the injected electron bunch to remain in the accelerating and focusing phase of the wakefields. We describe the plasma source*** that satisfies this requirement during the beam plasma interaction. Rb vapor with  10¹⁵ cm⁻³ density is confined in a 10 m long 4 cm diameter, stainless-steel tube which is heated to  200 Co by an oil heat exchanger. The access to the source during interaction is provided by custom built fast valves. The vapor is fully tunnel ionized (first e-) by a laser forming a 2 mm diameter plasma channel.
Copyright/License	CC-BY-3.0

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