Directional-sensitive wide field-of-view monitoring of high-intensity proton beams by spectral tracking of scattered particles with scattering foil and miniaturized radiation camera

Abstract

Abstract Monitoring and characterization of particle beams in wide-range is often necessary in research and many applications with particle accelerators. The quantitative measurement and evaluation of composition especially of high-intensity beams are limited and can become a challenge with conventional methods especially with simplified instrumentation for ease of deployment. For this purpose, we developed a novel technique based on high-resolution spectral-sensitive tracking of single particles scattered from the beam path by a thin foil. We use a compact radiation camera equipped with the semiconductor pixel detector Timepix3 together with dedicated Monte-Carlo simulations. Particle-event type discrimination and directional information are produced by the detector spectral-tracking response together with particle-type resolving power derived from experimental calibrations. Directional- and spectral-sensitive components can be resolved in wide field-of-view. Quantification of the primary beam intensity is extrapolated by numerical calculations. Demonstration and evaluation of the technique are provided by measurements with 33 MeV protons from a light ion cyclotron accelerator. Scattered particles originating from the thin foil, the accelerator beam nozzle, and the air space along the beam path are detected and evaluated.