High Intensity High Charge State ECR Ion Sources

The next-generation heavy ion beam accelerators such as the proposed Rare Isotope Accelerator (RIA), the Radioactive Ion Beam Factory at RIKEN, the GSI upgrade project, the LHC-upgrade, and IMP in Lanzhou require a great variety of high charge state ion beams with a magnitude higher beam intensity than currently achievable. High performance Electron Cyclotron Resonance (ECR) ion sources can provide the flexibility since they can routinely produce beams from hydrogen to uranium. Over the last three decades, ECR ion sources have continued improving the available ion beam intensities by increasing the magnetic fields and ECR heating frequencies to enhance the confinement and the plasma density. With advances in superconducting magnet technology, a new generation of high field superconducting sources is now emerging. They are designed to meet the requirements of these next generation accelerator projects. The paper will briefly review the field of high performance ECR ion sources and the latest developments for high intensity ion beam production. The currently most advanced next-generation superconducting ECR ion source VENUS will be described in more detail.