T<scp>HE</scp>C<scp>ONTINUOUS</scp>E<scp>LECTRON</scp>B<scp>EAM</scp>A<scp>CCELERATOR</scp>F<scp>ACILITY</scp>: CEBAF at the Jefferson Laboratory

TLDR

The Jefferson Laboratory’s CEBAF delivers multi‑GeV continuous‑wave electron beams for nuclear and particle physics experiments, and its successful superconducting RF technology has spurred new quark‑structure studies, increased user demand for a 12 GeV upgrade, and applications in other projects. CEBAF consists of two antiparallel linacs connected by nine recirculation beam lines, allowing up to five passes. By the mid‑1990s CEBAF was delivering simultaneous multi‑energy beams up to 4 GeV to three halls, and by 2000 routine operation reached nearly 6 GeV with currents from 1 µA to 150 µA, 1 nA to 100 nA, and routinely >75 % polarization.

Abstract

▪ Abstract The Jefferson Laboratory's superconducting radiofrequency (srf) Continuous Electron Beam Accelerator Facility (CEBAF) provides multi-GeV continuous-wave (cw) beams for experiments at the nuclear and particle physics interface. CEBAF comprises two antiparallel linacs linked by nine recirculation beam lines for up to five passes. By the early 1990s, accelerator installation was proceeding in parallel with commissioning. By the mid-1990s, CEBAF was providing simultaneous beams at different but correlated energies up to 4 GeV to three experimental halls. By 2000, with srf development having raised the average cavity gradient to 7.5 MV/m, energies up to nearly 6 GeV were routine, at 1–150 μA for two halls and 1–100 nA for the other. Also routine are beams of &gt;75% polarization. Physics results have led to new questions about the quark structure of nuclei, and therefore to user demand for a planned 12 GeV upgrade. CEBAF's enabling srf technology is also being applied in other projects.