The European XFEL LLRF System

Abstract

The European X-Ray free electron laser accelerator consists of 808 superconducting cavities grouped in 25 RF stations. The challenges associated with the size and complexity of this accelerator require a high-precision, modular and scalable low level RF (LLRF) system. The Micro TCA technology (MTCA.4) was chosen to support this system and adapted for RF standards. State-of-the-art hardware development in close collaboration with the industry allowed for the system continuity and maintainability. The complete LLRF system design is now in its final phase and the designed hardware was installed and commissioned at FLASH. The MTCA.4 LLRF architecture and system performance results will be shown. Operation strategies and future automation algorithms for performance optimization will also be presented in this paper. Copyright © 2012 by IEEE.