The positron production and acceleration facility at the 90 MeV electron linac of Ghent State University

The electron-to-positron conversion and acceleration system is described. It essentially consists of a 3 mm thick W-Re converter target immersed in a magnetic lens and placed in between both sections of a linear electron accelerator; it further comprises a long solenoid over the second linac section and a short coil to bridge the gap between the converter and the accelerator section. Mean positron currents (within $\text{Δ E}\text{E}\text{= ± 1\%}$) of more than 1 nA at positron energies around 25 MeV are readily available, while this value may be enhanced to about 4 nA.The practical possibilities of this facility are illustrated by the measurement of the ²⁸Si photoproton spectrum using a quasimonoenergetic photon flux produced by the in-flight annihilation of the accelerated positron beam.     

Superheated drop neutron detectors used at the ESRF

The ESRF operates a 6 GeV electron storage ring to produce X-rays. The experimental hall is classified as a free access area in terms of radiation protection. Interlocked radiation monitors guarantee the corresponding dose constraint. Measurements have shown that the radiation field outside the storage ring is dominated by neutrons. Apfel REMbrandt superheated drop detectors have been chosen. In total, 64 monitors are installed around the storage ring, interlocked to the accelerator personnel safety system. Since the radiation fields are highly pulsed, the response of the REMbrandt monitors to pulsed radiation was measured and compared with theoretical predictions. Dose recordings from the bubble detectors are shown, illustrating the good correlation between beam losses and dose rates, as well as showing the correspondence between neutron and photon dose values. Finally, around the beamline hutches, REMbrandt neutron monitors have been used to evaluate the ratio between neutron and photon dose rates.     

Measurement of absorbed dose by 7-GeV bremsstrahlung in a PMMA phantom

High-energy electron storage rings generate energetic bremsstrahlung photons through radiative interaction of the particle beam with the residual gas molecules and other components inside the storage ring. At synchrotron radiation facilities, where beamlines are channeled out of the storage ring, a continuous bremsstrahlung spectrum, with a maximum energy of the stored particle beam, will be present. At the advanced photon source (APS), where the stored beam energy is 7 GeV, bremsstrahlung generated in the straight sections of the insertion device beamlines, which are a total of 15.38 m in length, can be significant. The contribution from each bremsstrahlung interaction adds up to produce a narrow mono-directional bremsstrahlung beam that comes down through the insertion device beamlines. The resulting absorbed dose distributions by this radiation in a 300 mm×300 mm×300 mm tissue substitute cube phantom were measured with LiF:Mg,Ti (TLD-700) thermoluminescent dosemeters. The normalized absorbed dose, in a cross-sectional area of 100 mm² at a depth of 150 mm of the PMMA phantom, was measured as 3.3×10⁶ mGy h⁻¹W⁻¹ for 7-GeV bremsstrahlung spectrum.     

Dose build up correction for radiation monitors in high-energy bremsstrahlung photon radiation fields

Conventional radiation monitors have been found to underestimate the personal dose equivalent in the high-energy bremsstrahlung photon radiation fields encountered near electron storage rings. Depth-dose measurements in a water phantom were carried out with a radiation survey meter in the bremsstrahlung photon radiation fields from a 450 MeV electron storage ring to find out the magnitude of the underestimation. Dose equivalent indicated by the survey meter was found to build up with increase in thickness of water placed in front of the meter up to certain depth and then reduce with further increase in thickness. A dose equivalent build up factor was estimated from the measurements. An absorbed dose build up factor in a water phantom was also estimated from calculations performed using the Monte Carlo codes, EGS-4 and EGSnrc. The calculations are found to be in very good agreement with the measurements. The studies indicate inadequacy of commercially available radiation monitors for radiation monitoring within shielded enclosures and in streaming high-energy photon radiation fields from electron storage rings, and the need for proper correction for use in such radiation fields.     

光电技术在合肥光源束测量系统中的应用

介绍了光电技术在合肥同步辐射加速器束流测量系统中的应用。介绍了合肥 2 0 0 Me V电子直线加速器利用光电二极管阵列的能谱测量系统、合肥 80 0 Me V电子储存环利用 CCD技术的束流截面测量系统以及利用单光子计数法测量束团纵向精细结构。本文给出了测量结果。     

Development of SPring-8 vacuum system

SPring-8 storage ring has been available for user operation with low emittance and extreme stability for over 10 years. However there occurred some problems in the components of the storage ring due to high-brightness synchrotron radiation (SR) and low-emittance operation. On the vacuum system of the storage ring, an accurate pressure could not be measured near the photon absorber due to scattered high-energy SR to the gauge head. High-energy SR activated dissolved oxygen in cooling water, and the activated dissolved oxygen corroded the inside of the photon absorbers in SR irradiation part. Air leakage occurred at an injection chamber due to impact by a small-size electron beam produced by low-emittance operation.We investigated the cause of the aforementioned difficulties with the vacuum system and prescribed the treatments described in this paper. In addition, we are making continual efforts at further system upgrades such as developing an RF shield that suppresses temperature increase in the shield in possible high-current operation.     

Multipoint Thomson scattering system for the extrap Z-pinch experiment

A Thomson scattering system for simultaneous measurements of the electron temperature and density at three different positions and at two different times during a single plasma shot has been developed for a Z-pinch experiment. The plasma in the pinch is characterized by densities in the range from 5 × 10²⁰ to 10²² m⁻³, temperatures up to 30 eV and a pinch radius of the order of 1 cm. The spatial resolution of three points with 3 mm between points is obtained by imaging the plasma onto a matrix of quartz optical fibres at the output slit of the spectrometer. Thus only one spectrometer is used together with 15 PM-tubes to detect the scattered radiation as well as the background radiation. Due to the relatively dense plasma prevailing in this Z-pinch discharge the number of scattered photons is large and the photon to electron conversion noise is small. Therefore the background radiation is the most important factor limiting the accuracy of the measurements.     

Reference-free total reflection X-ray fluorescence analysis of semiconductor surfaces with synchrotron radiation

Total reflection X-ray fluorescence (TXRF) analysis is a well-established method to monitor lowest level contamination on semiconductor surfaces. Even light elements on a wafer surface can be excited effectively when using high-flux synchrotron radiation in the soft X-ray range. To meet current industrial requirements in nondestructive semiconductor analysis, the Physikalisch-Technische Bundesanstalt (PTB) operates dedicated instrumentation for analyzing light element contamination on wafer pieces as well as on 200- and 300-mm silicon wafer surfaces. This instrumentation is also suited for grazing incidence X-ray fluorescence analysis and conventional energy-dispersive X-ray fluorescence analysis of buried and surface nanolayered structures, respectively. The most prominent features are a high-vacuum load-lock combined with an equipment front end module and a UHV irradiation chamber with an electrostatic chuck mounted on an eight-axis manipulator. Here, the entire surface of a 200- or a 300-mm wafer can be scanned by monochromatized radiation provided by the plane grating monochromator beamline for undulator radiation in the PTB laboratory at the electron storage ring BESSY II. This beamline provides high spectral purity and high photon flux in the range of 0.078-1.86 keV. In addition, absolutely calibrated photodiodes and Si(Li) detectors are used to monitor the exciting radiant power respectively the fluorescence radiation. Furthermore, the footprint of the excitation radiation at the wafer surface is well-known due to beam profile recordings by a CCD during special operation conditions at BESSY II that allow for drastically reduced electron beam currents. Thus, all the requirements of completely reference-free quantitation of TXRF analysis are fulfilled and are to be presented in the present work. The perspectives to arrange for reference-free quantitation using X-ray tube-based, table-top TXRF analysis are also addressed.     

Studies of photon induced gas desorption using synchrotron radiation

In view of finalizing the design of the vacuum system of the Large Electron and Positron Storage Ring (LEP) we have studied synchrotron radiation induced neutral gas desorption. A 3 m section of an aluminum vacuum chamber has been exposed to the photon beam emerging from the electron storage ring DCI in Orsay, under conditions closely simulating the environment in a particle acceletor. In order of importance the gases desorbed were H₂, CO₂, CO and CH₄ with H₂O practically absent. Under the experimental conditions of an unbaked chamber and 11 mrad glancing incidence of the photons, the initial molecular desorption yields for these gases were typically 0.5, 8 × 10^?2, 2 × 10^?2 and 8 × 10^?3 molecules per photon respectively. These values could be reduced by about 1 to 2 orders of magnitude during continued photon exposure and most cases without evidence that this ‘beam cleaning action’ would be limited. After exposure to air and pumpdown of the previously cleaned chamber, we observe a significant memory effect. The dependence of the photon desorption on the angle of incidence has been studied down to a glancing angle of 11 mrad showing a definite deviation from the previously assumed 1/sin ø scaling. The implications of the results in terms of the expected beam-gas lifetime in LEP are discussed.     

The electron storage ring as a source of infrared radiation

The characteristics of synchrotron radiation in the infrared region have been investigated at the Berlin electron storage ring BESSY using Fourier spectroscopy. In accordance with calculation, it was found that BESSY at 100 mA beam current delivers higher fluxes than a conventional source only in the spectral region below 30 cm^?1, provided the interferometer is the throughput-limiting element. If, however, the throughput is limited by small sample size or, if the experiment requires a large f-number, the high brightness of synchrotron radiation could already yield flux advantages at several hundred wavenumbers. The possible application in one particular experiment - infrared reflection-absorption spectroscopy of adsorbed molecules on metal single crystal surfaces - is discussed. In the course of the investigations described here, it was also established that the short light pulses of the synchrotron radiation (～ 100 ps) do not adversely affect the resolution in Fourier transform spectroscopy.     

Effects of the grain size of CVD diamond films on the detector performance

Although the unique properties of CVD diamond films have made it a candidate material for radiation detectors, the detector performance is strongly dependent on the film quality. In this paper, three CVD diamond films with different grain size were grown by using a hot-filament chemical vapor deposition (HFCVD) technique and the ratio of the grain size to the film thickness is high to 50%. 5.9 keV ⁵⁵Fe X-rays measured the photocurrents and the pulse height distributions (PHDs) of these CVD diamond detectors. The detector performance is improved with the grain size increasing. The dark-current of 16.0 nA and the photocurrent of 15.9 nA are obtained at an electrical field of 50 kV⋅cm⁻¹ and the PHD peak is well separated from the noise pedestal.     

Design modelling and measured performance of the vacuum system of the Diamond Light Source storage ring

A one-dimensional diffusion model of the Diamond Light Source storage ring vacuum system is described and its predictions are compared with actual measured static (without beam) and dynamic (with beam) pressures over more than 2000 A h of beam conditioning at 3 GeV. An average specific thermal outgassing yield of 1·10⁻¹¹ mbar l/(s cm²) during initial beam circulation is obtained, which reduces to 2·10⁻¹² mbar l/(s cm²) after an accumulated beam dose of 1000 A h and an elapsed time of 769 days. In the presence of stored electron beam, the pressure rises as expected due to photon stimulated desorption (PSD). The PSD yield reduces with beam dose according to a (−2/3) power law as was applied in the model. Predicted and measured dynamic pressures generally agree within a factor of 2 over the whole range of beam conditioning dose studied.     

Preliminary design of a dedicated 6 GeV synchrotron radiation storage ring

A new magnetic lattice is proposed for a 6 GeV electron storage ring specifically designed for utilization of high brightness undulator and wiggler radiation sources.The basic cell is an achromatic arc with three combined function dipoles, having a vertical focusing gradient. With this arrangement it is possible to achieve an electron beam emittance of ～ 6 × 10^?9 m·rad at 6 GeV, moderately low chromaticity and good dynamic aperture.     

Trapping Electrons in Electrostatic Traps over the Surface of 4He

We have observed trapping of electrons in an electrostatic trap formed over the surface of liquid ⁴He. These electrons are detected by a Single Electron Transistor located at the center of the trap. We can trap any desired number of electrons between 1 and ∼30. By repeatedly (∼10³–10⁴ times) putting a single electron into the trap and lowering the electrostatic barrier of the trap, we can measure the effective temperature of the electron and the time of its thermalisation after heating up by incoherent radiation. E. Rousseau’s present address: Ecole Centrale, Paris, France. D. Ponarine’s present address: Chemistry Dept., North Carolina State Univ., Raleigh, NC 27695, USA.     

LEED intensity measurements by an improved Faraday cup collector

A new collector for post diffraction acceleration LEED equipment is described. By changing the energy of the beam at normal incidence, the spots in the LEED pattern are moving in radial direction. The intensity of the scattered electrons is measured with a fixed electron collector on the whole length of a radial silt in the fluorescent screen scanned by a helix rotating around the axis of the electron gun. The method is capable of measuring intensity beam profiles and angular beam profiles by different modes of operation. The background is monitored simultaneously on the whole silt length allowing subsequent background control or subtraction and electronic processing of the signal. With the present set-up diffracted electron beam currents down to 10^?12 A can be detected. The measuring time for one point of an l(E) curve is limited by the rotary frequency of the helix and the time constants of the electronic equipment.     

Beamstrahlung from colliding electron-positron beams with negligible disruption

We present radiative energy loss formulas for beamstrahlung from colliding electron-positron beams which experience negligible disruption, as determined by numerical simulation. Our computer code uses the correct quantum mechanical photon number spectrum for synchrotron radiation emitted by relativistic electrons to simulate with macroparticles the discrete nature of photon emission. For Gaussian beams with small average electron energy loss, we determine energy loss formulas valid for all radiation regimes from classical to extreme quantum mechanical which depend on only two beam parameters, a quantum radiation parameter ϒ₀ and a beam energy per unit length, Γ₀.     

Evaluation of the EDR-2 film for relative dosimetry of high-energy photon and electron beams

A sensitometric study of Kodak XV and EDR-2 radiographic films (Eastman Kodak Company, Rochester, NY) was performed using photons ranging from 75 kV to 18 MV and electrons ranging from 6 to 20 MeV. To investigate the applicability of the EDR-2 film for clinical radiation dosimetry, percentage depth-doses, profiles and distributions in open and dynamically wedged fields were measured using film and compared with data from a linear diode. Moreover, conventional quality assurance dose parameters were measured, including open-field dose profiles to determine flatness and symmetry of photon and electron beams. Finally, film was employed to validate dose distributions produced by complex computerised treatment planning techniques. Our conclusion is that the EDR-2 film is an effective tool for relative dosimetry of photon and electron beams.     

Coherent bremsstrahlung and parametric X-ray radiation from nonrelativistic electrons in a crystal

X-ray radiation generated by nonrelativistic electrons interacting with a crystal target exhibits several distinctive features in comparison to the relativistic case. The difference is related to the interference of the parametric X-ray radiation and coherent bremsstrahlung, which takes place for the nonrelativistic electrons. The characteristics of this radiation have been studied in the Bragg and Laue geometries in an electron microscope using a beam of electrons with energies in the 50–100 keV range. The necessary requirements on the target parameters, the measuring instrumentation, and the experimental geometry are established. Variation of the X-ray radiation frequency depending on the angle of electron beam incidence on the target in the region of non-relativistic electron energies has been observed for the first time. The X-ray radiation frequency has been also studied as a function of the primary electron beam energy. Tunable soft X-ray radiation with quantum energy in the range below 1 keV is obtained. The radiation quantum yield per electron within a unit solid angle amounts to ～10^?8.     

Measurement of particle polarization in e+e− storage rings by means of synchrotron radiation scattering on the colliding beam

A new method for measuring the polarization of e⁺e^? in storage rings is described. It is based on the scattering of synchrotron radiation on the colliding beam. The method is simple in operation and allows a simultaneous measurement of the polarization of the electron and positron beam. This method was applied to the energy calibration of the storage ring VEPP-4 in the high precision measurements of the ?-mesons' masses with MD-1 detector.