Dynamic simulations in SixTrack

The DYNK module allows element settings in SixTrack to be changed on a turn-by-turn basis. This document contains a technical description of the DYNK module in SixTrack. It is mainly intended for a developer or advanced user who wants to modify the DYNK module, for example by adding more functions that can be used to calculate new element settings, or to add support for new elements that can be used with DYNK.Comment: Submission to CERN yellow report / conference proceeding, the 2015 collimation tracking code worksho

STUDY OF FRINGE FIELDS EFFECTS FROM FINAL FOCUS QUADRUPOLES ON BEAM BASED MEASURED QUANTITIES

Accelerator physics needs advanced modeling and simulation techniques, in particular for beam stability studies. A deeper understanding of the effects of magnetic fields non-linearities will greatly help in the improvement of future colliders design and performance. In previous papers, a new tracking method was proposed to study the effect of the longitudinal dependency of the harmonics on the beam dynamics. In this paper, the study will focus on the effects on observable quantities in beam based measurements, for the case of HL-LHC Inner Triplet and with possible tests in LHC

AWAKE, the advanced proton driven plasma wakefield acceleration experiment at CERN

The Advanced Proton Driven Plasma Wakefield Acceleration Experiment (AWAKE) aims at studying plasma wakefield generation and electron acceleration driven by proton bunches. It is a proof-of-principle R&D experiment at CERN and the world׳s first proton driven plasma wakefield acceleration experiment. The AWAKE experiment will be installed in the former CNGS facility and uses the 400 GeV/c proton beam bunches from the SPS. The first experiments will focus on the self-modulation instability of the long (rms ~12 cm) proton bunch in the plasma. These experiments are planned for the end of 2016. Later, in 2017/2018, low energy (~15 MeV) electrons will be externally injected into the sample wakefields and be accelerated beyond 1 GeV. The main goals of the experiment will be summarized. A summary of the AWAKE design and construction status will be presented

Experimental Observation of Plasma Wakefield Growth Driven by the Seeded Self-Modulation of a Proton Bunch

We measure the effects of transverse wakefields driven by a relativistic proton bunch in plasma with densities of 2.1 x 10(14) and 7.7 x 10(14) electrons/cm(3). We show that these wakefields periodically defocus the proton bunch itself, consistently with the development of the seeded self-modulation process. We show that the defocusing increases both along the bunch and along the plasma by using time resolved and time-integrated measurements of the proton bunch transverse distribution. We evaluate the transverse wakefield amplitudes and show that they exceed their seed value (< 15 MV/m) and reach over 300 MV/m. All these results confirm the development of the seeded self-modulation process, a necessary condition for external injection of low energy and acceleration of electrons to multi-GeV energy levels

Path to AWAKE : evolution of the concept

This paper describes the conceptual steps in reaching the design of the AWAKE experiment currently under construction at CERN. We start with an introduction to plasma wakefield acceleration and the motivation for using proton drivers. We then describe the self-modulation instability - a key to an early realization of the concept. This is then followed by the historical development of the experimental design, where the critical issues that arose and their solutions are described. We conclude with the design of the experiment as it is being realized at CERN and some words on the future outlook. A summary of the AWAKE design and construction status as presented in this conference is given in Gschwendtner et al. [1]

SixTrack V and runtime environment

SixTrack is a single-particle tracking code for high-energy circular accelerators routinely used at CERN for the Large Hadron Collider (LHC), its luminosity upgrade (HL-LHC), the Future Circular Collider (FCC) and the Super Proton Synchrotron (SPS) simulations. The code is based on a 6D symplectic tracking engine, which is optimized for long-term tracking simulations and delivers fully reproducible results on several platforms. It also includes multiple scattering engines for beam–matter interaction studies, as well as facilities to run the integrated simulations with external particle matter interaction codes. These features differentiate SixTrack from general-purpose, optics-design software. The code recently underwent a major restructuring to merge the advanced features into a single branch, such as multiple ion species, interface with external codes and high-performance input/output. This restructuring also removed a large number of compilation flags, instead enabling/disabling the functionality with runtime options. In the process, the code was moved from Fortran 77 to Fortran 2018 standard, also allowing and achieving a better modularization. Physics models (beam–beam effects, Radio-Frequency (RF) multipoles, current carrying wires, solenoid and electron lenses) and methods (symplecticity check) have also been reviewed and refined to offer more accurate results. The SixDesk runtime environment allows the user to manage the large batches of simulations required for accurate predictions of the dynamic aperture. SixDesk supports several cluster environments available at CERN as well as submitting jobs to the LHC@Home volunteering computing project, which enables volunteers contributing with their hardware to CERN simulation. SixTrackLib is a new library aimed at providing a portable and flexible tracking engine for single- and multi-particle problems using the models and formalism of SixTrack. The library is able to run in CPUs as well as graphical processing units (GPUs). This contribution presents the status of the code, summarizes the main existing features and provides details about the main development lines SixTrack, SixDesk and SixTrackLib

SixTrack Version 5: Status and New Developments

SixTrack Version 5 is a major SixTrack release that introduces new features, with improved integration of the existing ones, and extensive code restructuring. New features include dynamic-memory management, scattering-routine integration, a new initial-condition module, and reviewed post-processing methods. Existing features like on-line aperture checking and Fluka-coupling are now enabled by default. Extensive performance regression tests have been developed and deployed as part of the new-release generation. The new features of the tracking environment developed for the massive numerical simulations will be discussed as well

Path to AWAKE: Evolution of the concept

This paper describes the conceptual steps in reaching the design of the AWAKE experiment currently under construction at CERN. We start with an introduction to plasma wakefield acceleration and the motivation for using proton drivers. We then describe the self-modulation instability - a key to an early realization of the concept. This is then followed by the historical development of the experimental design, where the critical issues that arose and their solutions are described. We conclude with the design of the experiment as it is being realized at CERN and some words on the future outlook. A summary of the AWAKE design and construction status as presented in this conference is given in Gschwendtner et al. [1]

AWAKE readiness for the study of the seeded self-modulation of a 400 GeV proton bunch

AWAKE is a proton-driven plasma wakefield acceleration experiment. We show that the experimental setup briefly described here is ready for systematic study of the seeded self-modulation of the 400 GeV proton bunch in the 10 m long rubidium plasma with density adjustable from 1 to 10 x 10(14) cm(-3). We show that the short laser pulse used for ionization of the rubidium vapor propagates all the way along the column, suggesting full ionization of the vapor. We show that ionization occurs along the proton bunch, at the laser time and that the plasma that follows affects the proton bunch