Current status of ATLAS and proposed expansion to an exotic beam facility

The Argonne Tandem Linear Accelerator System (ATLAS) has been operating on a 24 hour, seven days a week schedule since the beginning of Fiscal Year 1994. Twenty-six different ion species ran during this period in 71 separate experiments. During the past year, there have been many projects undertaken to improve operation efficiency and upgrade various accelerator systems. There is also a new ECR ion source construction project underway. This paper covers, linac operation and new tuning techniques, the second generation ECR source construction project, the refrigerator system upgrade, an upgrade to the control system. Also described is a future expansion of ATLAS as an Exotic Beam Facility. (ATLAS is a world class heavy ion accelerator with an estimated value of approximately $80 million.) A concept that would utilize ATLAS as the foundation for a facility to generate and accelerate radioactive beams is briefly discussed.