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In recent years, significant efforts were taken at CERN and other high-energy physics laboratories to study and predict the consequences of particle beam impacts on devices such as collimators, targets, and dumps. The quasi-instantaneous beam impact raises complex dynamic phenomena which may be simulated resorting to implicit codes, for what concerns the elastic or elastoplastic solid regime. However, when the velocity of the produced stress waves surpasses the speed of sound and we enter into the shock regime, highly nonlinear numerical tools, called Hydrocodes, are usually necessary. Such codes, adopting very extensive equations of state, are also able to well reproduce events such as changes of phase, spallation, and explosion of the target. In order to derive or validate constitutive numerical models, experiments were performed in the past years at CERN HiRadMat facility. This work describes the acquisition system appositely developed for such experiments, whose main goal is to verify, mostly in real time, the response of matter when impacted by highly energetic proton beams. Specific focus is given to one of the most comprehensive testing campaigns, named “HRMT-14.” In this experiment, energy densities with peaks up to 20 kJ/cm3 were achieved on targets of different materials (metallic alloys, graphite, and diamond composites), by means of power pulses with a population up to 3 × 1013 p at 450 GeV. The acquisition relied on embarked instrumentation (strain gauges, temperature probes, and vacuum sensors) and on remote acquisition devices (laser Doppler vibrometer and high-speed camera). Several studies have been performed to verify the dynamic behaviour of the standard strain gauges and the related cabling in the chosen range of acquisition frequency (few MHz). The strain gauge measurements were complemented by velocity measurements performed using a customised long-range laser Doppler vibrometer (LDV) operating in the amplitude range of 24 m/s; the LDV, together with the high-speed video camera (HSVC), has been placed at a distance of 40 m from the target to minimize radiation damage. In addition, due to the large number of measuring points, a radiation-hard multiplexer switch has been used during the experiment: this system was designed to fulfil the multiple requirements in terms of bandwidth, contact resistances, high channel reduction, and radiation resistance. Shockwave measurements and intense proton pulse effects on the instrumentation are described, and a brief overlook of the comparison of the results of the acquisition devices with simulations, performed with the finite element tool Autodyn, is given. Generally, the main goal of such experiments is to benchmark and improve material models adopted on the tested materials in explicit simulations of particle beam impact, a design scenario in particle accelerators, performed by means of Autodyn. Simulations based on simplified strain-dependent models, such as Johnson–Cook, are run prior to the experiment. The model parameters are then updated in order to fit the experimental response, under a number of load cases to ensure repeatability of the model. This paper, on the other hand, mostly focuses on the development of the DAQ for HiRadMat experiments, and in particular for HRMT-14. Such development, together with the test design and run, as well as postmortem examination, spanned over two years, and its fundamental results, mostly in terms of dedicated instrumentation, have been used in all successive HiRadMat experiments as of 2014. This experimental method can also find applications for materials undergoing similarly high strain rates and temperature changes (up to 106 s-1 and 10.000 K, respectively), for example, in the case of experiments involving fast and intense loadings on materials and structures.

Many future particle colliders require beam crabbing to recover geometric luminosity loss from the nonzero crossing angle at the interaction point (IP). A first demonstration experiment of crabbing with hadron beams was successfully carried out with high energy protons. This breakthrough result is fundamental to achieve the physics goals of the high luminosity LHC (HL-LHC) and the future circular collider (FCC). The expected peak luminosity gain (related to collision rate) is 65% for HL-LHC and even greater for the FCC. Novel beam physics experiments with proton beams in CERN’s Super Proton Synchrotron (SPS) were performed to demonstrate several critical aspects for the operation of crab cavities in the future HL-LHC including transparency with a pair of cavities, a full characterization of the cavity impedance with high beam currents, controlled emittance growth from crab cavity induced rf noise.

The beam dump facility (BDF) is a project for a new facility at CERN dedicated to high intensity beam dump and fixed target experiments. Currently in its design phase, the first aim of the facility is to search for light dark matter and hidden sector models with the Search for Hidden Particles (SHiP) experiment. At the core of the facility sits a dense target/dump, whose function is to absorb safely the 400 GeV/c Super Proton Synchrotron (SPS) beam and to maximize the production of charm and beauty mesons. An average power of 300 kW will be deposited on the target, which will be subjected to unprecedented conditions in terms of temperature, structural loads and irradiation. In order to provide a representative validation of the target design, a prototype target has been designed, manufactured, and tested under the SPS fixed-target proton beam during 2018, up to an average beam power of 50 kW, corresponding to 350 kJ per pulse. The present contribution details the target prototype design and experimental setup, as well as a first evaluation of the measurements performed during beam irradiation. The analysis of the collected data suggests that a representative reproduction of the operational conditions of the beam dump facility target was achieved during the prototype tests, which will be complemented by a postirradiation examination campaign during 2020.

A rotatable-jaw collimator design was conceived as a solution to recover from catastrophic beam impacts which would damage a collimator at the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) or its High-Luminosity upgrade (HL-LHC). One such rotatable collimator prototype was designed and built at SLAC and delivered to CERN for tests with LHC-type circulating beams in the Super Proton Synchrotron (SPS). This was followed by destructive tests at the dedicated High Radiation to Materials (HiRadMat) facility to validate the design and rotation functionality. An overview of the collimator design, together with results from tests without and with beam are presented.

This paper reports the results from single-pulse experiments of a 440 GeV/c proton beam interacting with granular tungsten samples in both vacuum and helium environments. Remote high-speed photography and laser Doppler vibrometry were used to observe the effect of the beam on the sample grains. The majority of the results were derived from a trough containing ∼45 μm diameter spheres (not compacted) reset between experiments to maintain the same initial conditions. Experiments were also carried out on other open and contained samples for the purposes of comparison both with the 45 μm grain results and with a previous experiment carried out with sub-250 μm mixed crystalline tungsten powder in helium [Phys. Rev. ST Accel. Beams 17, 101005 (2014)PRABFM1098-440210.1103/PhysRevSTAB.17.101005]. The experiments demonstrate that a greater dynamic response is produced in a vacuum than in a helium environment and in smaller grains compared with larger grains. The examination of the dynamics of the grains after a beam impact leads to the hypothesis that the grain response is primarily the result of a charge interaction of the proton beam with the granular medium.

The CERN Large Hadron Collider is currently being upgraded to operate at a stored beam energy of 680 MJ through the High Luminosity upgrade. The LHC performance is dependent on the functionality of beam collimation systems, essential for safe beam cleaning and machine protection. A dedicated beam experiment at the CERN High Radiation to Materials facility is created under the HRMT-23 experimental campaign. This experiment investigates the behavior of three collimation jaws having novel composite absorbers made of copper diamond, molybdenum carbide graphite, and carbon fiber carbon, experiencing accidental scenarios involving the direct beam impact on the material. Material characterization is imperative for the design, execution, and analysis of such experiments. This paper presents new data and analysis of the thermostructural characteristics of some of the absorber materials commissioned within CERN facilities. In turn, characterized elastic properties are optimized through the development and implementation of a mixed numerical-experimental optimization technique.

This paper is divided into two parts. The first part presents recent measurements of ground motion in the LHC tunnel at CERN. From these measurements, an update of the ground motion model currently used in accelerator simulations is presented. It contains new features like a model of the lateral motion and the technical noise. In the second part, it is shown how this model can be used to evaluate the seismic response of a linear accelerator in the frequency domain. Then, the approach is validated numerically on a regular lattice, taking the dynamic behavior of the machine alignment stage and the mechanical stabilization of the quadrupoles into account.

For the Large Hadron Collider luminosity upgrade, two of the NbTi 8.3 T main bending dipoles will be replaced by two shorter Nb3Sn 11.2 T dipoles to create space for the installation of collimators in the dispersion suppression region. With the aim to verify the design features, several 2 m long 11 T models have been constructed and tested at CERN. During the fabrication and assembly of, so far, seven single and two double aperture short model magnets, several challenges were identified and tackled. These include reproducibility in coil fabrication and assembly procedure, as well as control of mechanical stresses in the conductor and surrounding structure. In order to limit coil over-compression and improve reproducibility, the cable insulation was re-optimized. In addition, a review of the collaring procedure of the 11 T magnet was launched with the goal of reducing the risk of conductor degradation due to excessive stress. In this paper, the main fabrication and assembly steps are described, including the description of the actions taken to resolve the identified weakness. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Rayleigh backscattering (RBS)-based distributed fiber sensors technology is becoming more and more crucial in various fields such as aerospace and defense, automotive, civil, and geotechnical. This technology is measuring the naturally occurring Rayleigh backscatter level in the optical fiber core; thus, any standard single-mode telecom optical fiber can be used. The application of distributed optical fiber strain sensing in the harsh environments of the European Organization for Nuclear Research required several mechanical tests to study the accuracy of strain sensing in cryogenic conditions. This study compares the performance of a RBS-based distributed optical fiber strain sensing down to cryogenic temperatures (4.2 K) with previously validated instrumentations such as electrical strain gauges and fiber Bragg grating technologies.

Objective: The 2014 update of the Swiss law on research increases patients' protection; it adds specific requirements for emergency situations, implying an active search for patients' wishes regarding research participation; the possibility of consent waivers is not clearly stated. We explored its practical impact in a RCT on critically ill adults., Methods: We considered prospectively collected consents of a multicenter trial addressing the impact of continuous EEG on survival. We assessed the proportions of consents obtained strictly according to the law, of specific waivers for this study obtained from the IRB (early death; relatives' unavailability despite repeated attempts), and the yield of retrieving statements on willingness to research participation. We compared the proportion of consent refusals with those of recent trials in similar environments, and estimated the potential impact on study results., Results: Of 402 recruited patients, six had double inclusions, one died before intervention, and 27 (6.7%, alive on long-term) were excluded following consent refusal or withdrawal, leaving 368 analyzable patients. Specific waivers allowed inclusion of 134 (36.4%) patients, while informed consents were obtained for all others. A statement of willingness to research participation was found in only 14.1%. In recent trials, consent refusal oscillated between 0%-23%, according to different waiver policies., Conclusions: Consent waivers should be specifically foreseen to prevent losing a potentially relevant proportion of patients reaching endpoints, and ensure results generalizability. The yield of looking for willingness to research participation seems low; this questions its current usefulness and calls for a public awareness campaign., (© 2020 The Authors. Brain and Behavior published by Wiley Periodicals LLC.)