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The University of Maryland Electron Ring is being built at the
Institute for Research in Electronics and Applied Physics, on the
University of Maryland, College Park campus. Funding for the project is provided by the
U.S. Department of Energy.
Prototype of the Ring-Straight Section and one 20° bend
Ring Function
The Maryland ring will function as a machine that transports electron beams in a circle. Future
stages of the project call for accelerating the beam. Compared to large accelerators which are miles
long and built underground (such as Brookhaven
National Laboratory's 'RHIC' ion accelerator pictured here), the Maryland model is a miniature.
Once built it will fit into a large room, and be approximately twelve feet in diameter.
The University of Maryland Electron Ring is composed of eighteen 20° sections, each section having
the same basic characteristics. The purpose of conducting this research is to gain a better
understanding of certain types of electron and ion beams. This project is designed to be a smaller,
scaled model of what occurs in a large ion accelerator. Because of its small scale, the cost of the
project remains relatively low.
Physics
The main purpose of the ring is to study the physics of high-current,
space-charge dominated electron beams
"High current" |
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"Space-charge dominated" |
| Refers to the heightened intensity of the beam. A high-current beam is more tightly
packed with electrons than a low-current beam. |
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Describes the electrons' environment. The tightly packed electrons repel each other due to the
negative charge on each electron. This overall force which each electron exerts on every other
electron is dubbed the "space-charge" force. The space-charge force causes the electron beam to
expand, and thus the challenge is to keep the beam under control by means of magnetic focusing.
A beam becomes "space-charge dominated" when the beam expansion due to space-charge becomes greater
than the expansion caused by the beam's temperature. |
Applications
The knowledge gained through this research has applications in many different research areas which
impact our lives. These research areas deal with intense beams. They include spallation neutron
sources, hadron and lepton colliders, synchrotron light sources, and heavy ion inertial fusion.
- Spallation neutron sources have applications in materials research, making materials stronger and more resilient. Which in turn gives us better buildings, bridges, ...why you just name it.
- Hadron and lepton colliders give scientists a better understanding of the behavior of fundamental forces and particles in our universe.
- Synchrotron light sources are used to create light with very short wavelengths, and are used for medical applications, materials research, and studies of fundamental physics.
- Heavy ion inertial fusion involves the research effort to create energy by means of nuclear fusion. If successful, this method of producing energy could replace the diminishing supply of fossil fuels. The fuel for fusion reactions is plentiful on Earth, the reactions produce no greenhouse gases, and radioactive by-products have much shorter life times than those created by fission reactors.
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A list of links to relevant laboratories' web sites is available.
Computer Codes
Computer simulation is an important step in experimental design, and aids in understanding experimental results. The Maryland Electron Ring is being used to test the simulation accuracy of various computer codes which may be used in designing and conducting other
research ventures, such as the ones discussed above.
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