A Hybrid Design of Project-X

Abstract

Project-X is a leading candidate of the next major accelerator construction project at Fermilab. The mission need of Project-X is to establish an intensity frontier for particle physics research, or more precisely, to build a multi-MW proton source for neutrino and other particle studies. Coupled with an upgraded Main Injector (MI) and Recycler, an 8 GeV superconducting RF (SRF) H-minus linac meets this need [1]. However, a more cost effective approach would be a hybrid design, namely, a combination of a 2 GeV SRF linac and an 8 GeV rapid cycling synchrotron (RCS) in lieu of an 8 GeV SRF linac. This alternative design also meets the mission need but at a lower cost since a synchrotron is cheaper than a SRF linac. It retains the ability to use a 2 GeV SRF linac for ILC technology development. It reuses the existing Debuncher enclosure and Booster RF. The transport line of 2 GeV H-minus particles is shorter than the present 8 GeV design since stronger bending magnets can be used. The blackbody radiation stripping of H-minus particles will no longer be a problem and the requirement of a cryogenic beam screen can be eliminated. The efficiency of stripping foil is higher and injection loss (kJ) will be reduced by a factor of 4. This paper introduces this alternative design and describes briefly the major components in the design.