Development of a Diamond-Based Cylindrical Dielectric Loaded Accelerating Structure

This project will develop a diamond-based accelerating structure that can sustain an accelerating gradient larger than 600 MV/m, which would significantly exceed the limits of conventional accelerating structures. Multipacting will be suppressed by dehydrogenation of the diamond surface. In Phase I, a cylindrical diamond-based dielectric loaded accelerator structure will be designed, developed, and bench tested. A set of diamond tubes (1.5-3.0 cm diameter, thickness ~1mm, and 5-10 cm long) will be fabricated using a plasma chemical vapor deposition (CVD) process. Numerical modeling will be used to optimize the parameters of the accelerating structures and to perform beam-dynamics simulations. Commercial Applications and other Benefits as described by the awardee: In addition to the application to next-generation accelerators, the technology should have application to microwave power source designs and other large-signal, high-power dielectric applications. The diamond tubes also should find use in molecular filters, drilling tools, waveguides, and hypodermic needles.