Charge state breeding of radioactive ions with an electron cyclotron resonance ion source at TRIUMF

Abstract

Efficient primary ion sources at ISOL facilities normally produce singly charged ions. This limits the usable mass range for postacceleration due to the A∕Q acceptance of the accelerator. At the ISAC facility at TRIUMF an A∕Q below 7 is desired to avoid further stripping. Thus, charge state breeding is necessary if higher masses are to be accelerated. A 14 GHz ECRIS “PHOENIX” booster has been chosen as a breeder. In order to investigate and optimize its performance under ISAC conditions it has been set up at a test bench equipped with a standard ISAC target-ion-source to produce singly charged ions. A series of measurements has been performed with the noble gases Ar, Kr, and Xe. Efficiencies of more than 6% in the maximum of the charge state distribution after mass separation have been obtained and the emittance of the extracted beam and breeding times have been measured. This article gives a status report on the ongoing measurements.