Space-charge effects in ionization beam profile monitors

Ionization profile monitors (IPMs) are widely used in accelerators for non-destructive and fast diagnostics of high energy particle beams. At high beam intensities, the space-charge forces make the measured IPM profiles significantly different from those of the beams. We analyze dynamics of the secondaries in IPMs and develop an effective algorithm to reconstruct the beam sizes from the measured IPM profiles. Efficiency of the developed theory is illustrated in application to the Fermilab 8 GeV proton Booster IPMs.

Automated summary

Ionization profile monitors (IPMs) are commonly used in accelerators for diagnosing high energy particle beams, but at high beam intensities, the measured profiles may differ due to space-charge forces. By analyzing dynamics of secondaries in IPMs and developing an algorithm, beam sizes can be effectively reconstructed. This theory has been successfully applied to Fermilab's 8 GeV proton Booster IPMs to demonstrate its efficiency.