Performance of a cryogenic vacuum system (COLDEX) with an LHC type beam

The cold bore experiment installed in the super proton synchrotron has been used to study the performance of a vacuum system operating at cryogenic temperatures in the presence of a large hadron collider (LHC) type proton beam. The ∼2 m long cryostat, which can be cooled below 3 K, is fitted with an actively cooled beam screen which can be temperature controlled between 5 and 100 K. Molecular desorption and deposited heat load measurements, with or without gas pre-condensation, have been performed. Implications to the LHC design and operation will be discussed.