The MAXEBIS at GSI as a test ion source for charge breeding and for HITRAP

Area of Science:

• Atomic Physics
• Accelerator Physics

Background:

• The MAXEBIS electron beam ion source, developed at the University of Frankfurt, is crucial for charge breeding research.
• Its installation at GSI facilitates offline testing for the HITRAP project and advanced charge breeding explorations.

Purpose of the Study:

• To characterize the performance of the MAXEBIS electron beam ion source.
• To investigate and mitigate beam losses during ion injection and transport.
• To determine the injection and breeding efficiency of the MAXEBIS for the first time.

Main Methods:

• Installation of new diagnostics and beam optics.
• Utilizing two external ion sources for singly charged ion production.
• Employing SIMION code for beam transport simulation and beamline modification.
• Measuring beam emittance using a nondestructive beam profile method.
• Analyzing electron current density via charge state analysis of time-of-flight (TOF) spectra.

Main Results:

• First time-of-flight (TOF) spectra of charge-bred argon ions were obtained.
• Beam losses were identified in the transport line from the multipassage spectrometer (MPS) to MAXEBIS.
• SIMION simulations led to modifications that addressed beam transport issues.
• Injection and breeding efficiencies of the MAXEBIS were quantified for the first time.

Conclusions:

• The study successfully characterized the MAXEBIS electron beam ion source.
• Simulations and modifications effectively addressed beam transport losses.
• The determined injection and breeding efficiencies provide critical data for future experiments.