Higher harmonic cavities (HHCs), also known as Landau cavities, have been proposed to increase the beam lifetime and Landau damping by lengthening the bunch and increasing the synchrotron tune spread. Here, we present an optimized 1.5 GHz normal conducting HHC design for the Advanced Light Source Upgrade project at Lawrence Berkeley National Lab with a superconducting-like geometry for lower R/Q. The optimization goal is to reach the required shunt impedance while maintaining a relatively high Q value of the cavities. A multi-objective genetic algorithm (MOGA)-based optimization process is applied to optimize the radio frequency (RF) design. This study serves as an example of how a genetic algorithm can be used to optimize RF cavities. Detailed exploration and characterization of the MOGA-based RF cavity optimization have been demonstrated from the aspects of minimizing the coupled bunch instabilities and analyzing the higher-order modes and the corresponding impedance of the HHC.

A GHz bandwidth vertical beam feedback system has been in development at the CERN SPS for control of unstable vertical beam motion in single bunch and bunch train configurations. We present measurements and recent studies of stable and unstable motion for intensities up to 2x10(11) p/bunch[1]. The system has been operated at 3.2 GS/s with 16 samples across a 5-ns RF bucket (4.2 ns 3 sigma bunch at injection) and experimental results confirm damping of intra-bunch instabilities in Q20, Q22 and Q26 optics configurations. Instabilities with growth rates of 1/200 turns are well-controlled from injection, consistent with the achievable gains for the 2 installed stripline kickers with 1 kW broadband power. Measurements from multiple studies in single-bunch and bunch train configurations show achieved damping rates, control of multiple intra-bunch modes, behavior of the system at injection (including interaction with the existing vertical damper) and final damped noise floor. The work is motivated by anticipated intensity increases from the LIU and HL-LHC upgrade programs [2], and has included the development of a new 1 GHz bandwidth slotline kicker structure and associated amplifier system.

The ALS-U upgrade promises to deliver diffraction limited performance throughout the soft x-ray range by lowering the horizontal emittance by a factor of 40 compared to the current ALS. One of the consequences of producing a small emittance is a small dynamic aperture, although the momentum acceptance will remain large enough for acceptable beam lifetime. To overcome this challenge, ALS-U will use on-axis swap-out injection to exchange bunch trains between the storage ring and an accumulator ring. On-axis swapout injection requires special fast pulsers and state-of-the-art stripline kicker magnets. This paper reports on the results of the on-axis swap-out injection R&D program, including beam tests of a complete stripline kicker/pulser system on the current ALS and the development of methods to speed up beam based commissioning after the upgrade shutdown.

The ALS upgrade to a diffraction-limited light source (ALS-U) depends on the ability to lengthen the stored bunches to limit the emittance growth and increase the beam life time. In order to achieve lengthening in excess of fourfold necessary to this end, we are investigating the use of the same passive 1.5 GHz normal-conducting RF cavities currently used on the ALS. While the upgraded ring RF parameters and fill pattern make it easier as long as the beaminduced phase transient is concerned, the large lengthening factor and the strongly non-linear lattice require particular attention to the cavities contribution to the machine overall impedance budget. In this paper we present our estimates of the narrow-band impedance obtained by numerical simulation and bench measurements of the cavities’ resonant modes.

Science needs are pushing the development of MHz-class repetition-rate linac-based facilities generating high-brightness electron beams. The successful lower repetition-rate RF gun schemes cannot be scaled up to MHz rates. At LBNL, we developed the VHF-Gun, a room-temperature RF gun designed for CW operation and high-brightness beam performance.

A high bandwidth feedback demonstrator system has been developed for proof of concept transverse intra-bunch closed loop feedback studies at the CERN SPS. The system contains a beam pickup, analog front end receiver, signal processor, back end driver, power amplifiers and kicker structure. The main signal processing function is performed digitally, using very fast (4 GS/s) data converters to bring the system signals into and out of the digital domain. The digital signal processing is itself implemented in an FPGA allowing for maximum speed and flexibility. The signal processor is a modular design consisting of commercial and custom components. This approach allowed for a rapidly-developed prototype to be delivered in a short time with limited resources. Initial beam studies at the SPS using the system prior to the CERN long shutdown one (LS1) have been very encouraging. Building on this success, we are planning several key upgrades to the system, including the signal processor. This paper describes these key upgrades and reports on their progress. OVERVIEW AND UPGRADES TO THE DEMONSTRATION SYSTEM The high-current operation of the SPS for HL-LHC injection will require mitigation of possible Ecloud and TMCI driven intability effects [1]. A single-bunch wideband digital feedback system ( Fig. 1) was initially commissioned in November 2012 and used through the February 2013 SPS LS1 shutdown. During the CERN LS1 interval we are upgrading the Demonstration system to add functions necessary to validate a full-featured control system.

During the current run of an electron-positron collider DAFNE special electrodes for electron cloud suppression have been inserted in all dipole and wiggler magnets of the positron ring. In this paper we discuss the impact of these electrodes on beam dynamics and overall collider performance. In particular we report results of measurements such as e-cloud instabilities growth rate, transverse beam size variation, tune shifts along the bunch train etc. with the electrodes switched on and off that clearly indicate the effectiveness of the electrodes for e-cloud suppression.

In the TE wave method, microwaves are coupled into the beam-pipe and the effect of the electron cloud on these microwaves is measured. An electron cloud (EC) density can then be calculated from this measurement. There are two analysis methods currently in use. The first treats the microwaves as being transmitted from one point to another in the accelerator. The second more recent method, treats the beam-pipe as a resonant cavity. This paper will summarize the reasons for adopting the resonant TE wave analysis as well as give examples from CESRTA and DAΦNE of resonant beam-pipe. The results of bead-pull bench measurements will show some possible standing wave patterns, including a cutoff mode (evanescent) where the field decreases exponentially with distance from the drive point. We will outline other recent developments in the TE wave method including VORPAL simulations of microwave resonances, as well as the simulation of transmission in the presence of both an electron cloud and magnetic fields.

The Advanced Photoinjector Experiment (APEX) at the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory is dedicated to the development of a high-brightness high-repetition rate (MHz-class) electron injector for x-ray free-electron laser (FEL) and other applications where high repetition rates and high brightness are simultaneously required. The injector is based on a new concept rf gun utilizing a normal-conducting (NC) cavity resonating in the VHF band at 186 MHz, and operating in continuous wave (cw) mode in conjunction with high quantum efficiency photocathodes capable of delivering the required charge at MHz repetition rates with available laser technology. The APEX activities are staged in three phases. In phase 0, the NC cw gun is built and tested to demonstrate the major milestones to validate the gun design and performance. Also, starting in phase 0 and continuing in phase I, different photocathodes are tested at the gun energy and at full repetition rate for validating candidate materials to operate in a high-repetition rate FEL. In phase II, a room-temperature pulsed linac is added for accelerating the beam at several tens of MeV to reduce space charge effects and allow the measurement of the brightness of the beam from the gun when integrated in an injector scheme. The installation of the phase 0 beam line and the commissioning of the VHF gun are completed, phase I components are under fabrication, and initial design and specification of components and layout for phase II are under way. This paper presents the phase 0 commissioning results with emphasis on the experimental milestones that have successfully demonstrated the APEX gun capability of operating at the required performance.

The controlled transport and imaging of relativistic electron beams from laser plasma accelerators (LPAs) are critical for their diagnostics and applications. Here we present the design and progress in the implementation of the transport and monitoring system for an undulator based electron beam diagnostic. Miniature permanent-magnet quadrupoles (PMQs) are employed to realize controlled transport of the LPA electron beams, and cavity based electron beam position monitors for non-invasive beam position detection. Also presented is PMQ calibration by using LPA electron beams with broadband energy spectrum. The results show promising performance for both transporting and monitoring. With the proper transport system, XUV-photon spectra from THUNDER will provide the momentum distribution of the electron beam with the resolution above what can be achieved by the magnetic spectrometer currently used in the LOASIS facility.