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Linac4 cesiated surface H- sources are routinely operated for the commissioning of the CERN's Linac4 and on an ion source test stand. Stable current of 40-50 mA are achieved but the transmission through the LEBT of 80% was below expectations and triggered additional beam simulation and characterization. The H- beam profile is not Gaussian and emittance measurements are larger than simulation. The status of ongoing development work is described; 36 mA H- and 20 mA D- beams were produced with a 5.5 mm aperture cesiated surface ion source. The emittances measured at the test stand are presented. During a preliminary test, the Linac4 proton source delivered a total beam intensity of 70 mA (p, H2+, H3+). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Two volume sources equipped with DESY and CERN plasma generators and a low voltage electron dump were operated at 45 kV in the Linac4 tunnel and on a dedicated test stand. These volume sources delivered approximately 20 mA and ensured the commissioning of the Radio Frequency Quadrupole accelerator and of the first section of the Drift Tube Linac. CERN's prototype of a cesiated surface source equipped with this electron dump was operated continuously from November 2013 to April 2014 on the ion source test stand and is being commissioned in the Linac4 tunnel. Before cesiation, the prototype conditioned in volume mode provided up to 30 mA H- beam. Short cesiations, of the order of 10 mg effectively reduced the intensity of co-extracted electrons down to 2 - 8 times the H- current; this cesiated surface operation mode delivered up to 60 mA H- beam. An H- beam of the order of 40 mA was sustained up to four weeks operation with 500 μs pulses at 1.2s spacing. A new extraction was designed to match these beam properties. A copy of BNL's magnetron produced at CERN was tested at BNL and delivered at 40 kV H- beam exceeding Linac4's nominal intensity of 80 mA. In this contribution, the performances, dynamic response to cesiation, stability and availability of these prototypes are described. The needed optimization of the emittance of H- beam above 40 mA is presented, which requires an evolution of the front end that encompasses implementation of a large ceramic insulator [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The specifications set to the Linac4 ion source are: H- ion pulses of 0.5 ms duration, 80 mA intensity and 45 keV energy within a normalized emittance of 0.25 mmmrad RMS at a repetition rate of 2 Hz. In 2010, during the commissioning of a prototype based on H- production from the plasma volume, it was observed that the powerful co-extracted electron beam inherent to this type of ion source could destroy its electron beam dump well before reaching nominal parameters. However, the same source was able to provide 80 mA of protons mixed with a small fraction of H2+ and H3+ molecular ions. The commissioning of the radio frequency quadrupole accelerator (RFQ), beam chopper and H- beam diagnostics of the Linac4 are scheduled for 2012 and its final installation in the underground building is to start in 2013. Therefore, a crash program was launched in 2010 and reviewed in 2011 aiming at keeping the original Linac4 schedule with the following deliverables: Design and production of a volume ion source prototype suitable for 20-30 mA H- and 80 mA proton pulses at 45 keV by mid-2012. This first prototype will be dedicated to the commissioning of the low energy components of the Linac4. Design and production of a second prototype suitable for 40-50 mA H- based on an external RF solenoid plasma heating and cesiated-surface production mechanism in 2013 and a third prototype based on BNL's Magnetron aiming at reliable 2 Hz and 80 mA H- operations in 2014. In order to ease the future maintenance and allow operation with Ion sources based on three different production principles, an ion source "front end" providing alignment features, pulsed gas injection, pumping units, beam tuning capabilities and pulsed bipolar high voltage acceleration was designed and is being produced. This paper describes the progress of the Linac4 ion source program, the design of the Front end and first ion source prototype. Preliminary results of the summer 2012 commissioning are presented. The outlook on the future prototype ion sources is sketched. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]