Production of a Titanium Ion Beam Using Fluorides and Fluorine-Forming Precursors in an ECR Ion Source
The production of multiply charged titanium ions is of significant interest for accelerator-based experiments, surface modification technologies, and applications in nuclear physics. Due to the low saturated vapor pressure of titanium at temperatures below 1000 °C, the generation of titanium ion beams from an electron cyclotron resonance ion source (ECRIS) remains a challenging task. The choice of titanium vapor injection methods into the ECR plasma plays a key role in achieving high ionization efficiency, plasma stability, and reliable long-term source operation. In this work, alternative approaches for the injection of neutral titanium atoms into the ECR plasma are investigated, focusing on the use of fluorine-containing compounds. Titanium fluorides (TiF3, TiF4) possess a relatively high saturated vapor pressure at moderate temperatures, allowing to use standard resistively heated ovens operating up to 1000 °C. Another method involves the in-situ formation of titanium fluorides inside the plasma chamber via chemical reactions between metal titanium and the dissociation products of sulfur hexafluoride (SF6). These approaches enable controlled and efficient titanium injection into the ECRIS plasma with satisfactory extracted ion beam stability.