Nanosecond pulsed proton beam: upgrade of the accelerator-based neutron facility HiSPANOS at CNA (Spain)

TL;DR

This paper describes the upgrade of the CNA accelerator to produce nanosecond pulsed proton beams for neutron TOF measurements, including system design, implementation, and testing of the new pulsing system and beam line.

Contribution

It introduces a novel pulsing system and beam line upgrade enabling nanosecond proton pulses for neutron experiments at CNA.

Findings

Proton pulses of approximately one nanosecond width achieved.

The system operates at variable repetition rates from kHz to MHz.

Successful testing under various conditions demonstrated system performance.

Abstract

The 3 MV Tandem Pelletron accelerator at the Spanish Accelerator Laboratory (CNA) has been recently upgraded to produce pulsed ion beams for neutron Time-Of-Flight (TOF) measurements. The upgrade has consisted of two actions: a pulsing system installed at the low energy part of the Tandem accelerator and a new line fully equipped. The pulsing system provides approximately one nanosecond pulse width of protons with variable repetition rates from kHz down to MHz. The new line is equipped with conventional devices and a pick-up for timing measurements with high resolution. The properties of the whole system have been tested under various working conditions and they are described in some detail.