Tritium ion beam for an intense neutron source, INS

Conference · Mon Jan 01 04:00:00 UTC 1973

OSTI ID:4379634

Emigh, E R

The INS facility has been proposed to provide a neutronic environment similar to that anticipated in a fully operational fusionpower reactor. The neutron generator will produce an intense flux of 14-MeV neutrons> 10/sup 14/ neutrons/cm/sup 2/ sec from the collision of two intersecting beams, one of 1.1 A of 270-keV tritium ions and the other of a supersonic jet of deuterium molecules. Using either the pure 14-MeV primary-neutron spectrum or by tailoring the spectrum with appropriate moderators, crucial radiationdamage effects can be explored and better understood. To obtain a multi-ampere tritium-ion beam for the INS, an ion source that can operate continuously with a high ion-current density over a very large plasma ion-extraction area is required. The ion source must be designed to provide a quiescent plasma that is uniform in density over a relatively flat extraction surface. Such extraction will sesure a low beam emittance and manageable beam optics. An annular duoplasmatron is described that is designed to provide long-life reliability (> 2000 hrs), a high gas efficiency (> 20%), and high-quality beam generation (normalized emittance ~ 0.3 cmmrad). The beam transport system, including an accelerating column, bending magnets, and quadrupole focusing magnets, must be designed to transport the tritium ions to a well-defined target area without loss of appreciable power (the beam contains ~ 1/ 3 MW). Because of radioactive hazards in the handling of the tritium, and to minimize the tritium inventory, the vacuum system for the ion source and beam transpont must be capable of recycling the tritium using closed-loop techniques. (auth)

• Research Organization: Los Alamos Scientific Lab., N.Mex. (USA)
• DOE Contract Number: W-7405-ENG-36
• NSA Number: NSA-29-011657
• OSTI ID: 4379634
• Report Number(s): LA-UR--73-1613
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

*NEUTRON SOURCES-- THERMONUCLEAR REACTIONS
*TRITIUM IONS-- ION BEAMS
BEAM OPTICS
BEAM TRANSPORT
COLLIDING BEAMS
DEUTERIUM
DUOPLASMATRONS
FOCUSING
MEV RANGE 10-100
MOLECULAR BEAMS
N47300 --Isotope & Radiation Source Technology--Radiation Sources
N70800* --Physics--Controlled Thermonuclear Research-- Thermonuclear Engineering & Equipment