Design and simulation of C6+ hybrid single cavity linac for cancer therapy with direct plasma injection scheme

A hybrid single cavity (HSC) linac, whose structure is formed by combining a radio frequency quadrupole (RFQ) structure and a drift tube (DT) structure into one interdigital-H (IH) cavity, has been developed over a span of a few years by our research team [1]. In the present work, several different structures of an HSC linac are analyzed in order to achieve an optimum cavity electric field distribution and to enhance beam transmission. The proposed HSC linac design is a direct injector linac for a heavy ion synchrotron for radiotherapy. This design also has potential as a neutron source in boron neutron capture therapy. According to our simulations, an HSC linac accelerated C6+ ions from 25 keV/u up to 2 MeV/u in 1800 mm for a 94 kW feeding power with a 100 MHz operation. The detailed HSC linac structure design and the results of the cavity electromagnetic field simulation are reported in this paper.