arXiv subjects

Austin Hoover

Publications and source records attributed to Austin Hoover.

8 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2026

Demonstration of a novel phase space painting method in a coupled lattice to mitigate space charge in high-intensity hadron beams

Multi-turn charge-exchange injection is the primary method of creating high-intensity hadron beams in circular accelerators, and phase space painting during injection enables tailoring of the accumulated phase space distribution. A technique we call eigenpainting allows injection of particles into a single mode of a coupled ring, providing full four-dimensional control of the phase space distribution. Under ideal conditions, uniform eigenpainting generates a linear-force equilibrium distribution in the transverse plane, with zero volume in four-dimensional transverse phase space, even including space charge. We have implemented eigenpainting for the first time in the Spallation Neutron Source (SNS) Accumulator Ring. Injecting 8.8 $\mu$C of 800 MeV beam, we obtain a final ratio of intrinsic transverse emittances of $\approx$2.4. We analyze the effect of space charge on the final distribution through comparison of the reconstructed phase space to particle-in-cell simulations.

physics.acc-ph↗

arXiv2025

Feasibility of proton bunch compression in an operational high-power accelerator

A muon collider (MC) would require a high-power proton driver to generate intense muon beams at the start of the accelerator chain. Like other high-power facilities, the driver would accumulate intense proton bunches via charge-exchange injection from a linac into a ring. However, unlike other facilities, the MC would require an extreme longitudinal compression of the bunch. We aim to experimentally study the proposed compression scheme at the Spallation Neutron Source (SNS), which boasts a world-leading proton bunch intensity. In this paper, we describe the operating parameters of the SNS compared to the MC design, the capabilities of the current RF system, and the available beam diagnostics in the SNS accumulator ring. We also present initial simulations and experiments to judge the feasibility of the proposed research.

physics.acc-ph↗

arXiv2025

High-dimensional maximum-entropy phase space tomography

Reconstructing 4D or 6D phase space distributions from 1D or 2D measurements is a challenging inverse problem encountered in particle accelerators. Entropy maximization is an established method to incorporate prior information in the reconstruction, but it is typically infeasible in high-dimensional spaces. In this paper, I review two recent approaches to high-dimensional entropy maximization. The first approach utilizes differentiable simulations and a class of generative models known as \textit{normalizing flows}, whereas the second approach employs the method of Lagrange multipliers and Markov Chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) sampling. My aim is to provide a short explanation of each method using a common notation. I conclude by mentioning several unsolved problems in phase space tomography.

physics.acc-ph↗

arXiv2024

N-dimensional maximum-entropy tomography via particle sampling

We propose a modified maximum-entropy (MENT) algorithm for six-dimensional phase space tomography. The algorithm uses particle sampling and low-dimensional density estimation to approximate large sets of high-dimensional integrals in the original MENT formulation. We implement this approach using Markov Chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) sampling techniques and demonstrate convergence of six-dimensional MENT on both synthetic and measured data.

physics.acc-ph↗

arXiv2024

Four-dimensional phase space tomography from one-dimensional measurements of a hadron beam

In this paper, we use one-dimensional measurements to infer the four-dimensional phase space density of an accumulated proton beam in the Spallation Neutron Source (SNS) accelerator. The reconstruction was performed by maximizing the distribution's entropy subject to the measurement constraints, and thus represents the most conservative inference from the data. The reconstructed distribution reproduces the measured profiles down to the noise level, and simulations indicate that the problem is reasonably well-constrained. Similar measurements could serve as benchmarks for beam dynamics simulations in the SNS or hadron accelerators.

physics.acc-ph↗

arXiv2024

High-dimensional maximum-entropy phase space tomography using normalizing flows

Particle accelerators generate charged-particle beams with tailored distributions in six-dimensional position-momentum space (phase space). Knowledge of the phase space distribution enables model-based beam optimization and control. In the absence of direct measurements, the distribution must be tomographically reconstructed from its projections. In this paper, we highlight that such problems can be severely underdetermined and that entropy maximization is the most conservative solution strategy. We leverage normalizing flows -- invertible generative models -- to extend maximum-entropy tomography to six-dimensional phase space and perform numerical experiments to validate the model's performance. Our numerical experiments demonstrate consistency with exact two-dimensional maximum-entropy solutions and the ability to fit complicated six-dimensional distributions to large measurement sets in reasonable time.

physics.acc-ph↗

arXiv2023

Analysis of a hadron beam in five-dimensional phase space

We conduct a detailed measurement and analysis of a hadron beam in five-dimensional phase space at the Spallation Neutron Source Beam Test Facility. The measurement's resolution and dynamic range are sufficient to image sharp, high-dimensional features in low-density regions of phase space. To facilitate the complex task of feature identification in the five-dimensional phase space, we develop several analysis and visualization techniques, including non-planar slicing. We use these techniques to examine the transverse dependence of longitudinal hollowing and longitudinal dependence of transverse hollowing in the distribution. This analysis strengthens the claim that low-dimensional projections do not adequately characterize high-dimensional phase space distributions in low-energy hadron accelerators

physics.acc-ph↗

arXiv2022

Measurements of the five-dimensional phase space distribution of an intense ion beam

No simulation of intense beam transport has accurately reproduced measurements at the level of beam halo. One potential explanation of this discrepancy is a lack of knowledge of the initial distribution of particles in six-dimensional (6D)~phase space. A direct 6D measurement of an ion beam was recently performed at the Spallation Neutron Source (SNS) Beam Test Facility (BTF), revealing nonlinear transverse-longitudinal correlations in the beam core that affect downstream evolution. Unfortunately, direct 6D~measurements are limited in resolution and dynamic range; here, we discuss the use of three slits and one screen to measure a 5D projection of the 6D phase space distribution, overcoming these limitations at the cost of one dimension. We examine the measured 5D distribution before and after transport through the BTF and compare to particle-in-cell simulations. We also discuss the possibility of reconstructing the 6D distribution from 5D and 4D projections.

physics.acc-ph↗