A 1- to 5-MW, RCS-based, short-pulse spallation neutron source

Two accelerator configurations, the linac/compressor ring scheme and the linac/RCS scheme, are commonly used to provide the proton beam power for a short-pulse spallation neutron source. In one configuration, a full-power linac provides the beam power and a compressor ring shortens the pulse length from 1-ms down to 1 μs. In the other, rapid cycling synchrotrons (RCSs) provide the beam power and also shorten the pulse length. A feasibility study of a staged approach to a 5-MW proton source utilizing RCS technology, allowing intermediate operation at 1 MW, was performed at ANL and is presented in this paper. This study is complementary to a study in progress at ORNL based on a linac and an accumulator ring. Our 1-MW facility consists of a 400-MeV injector linac that delivers 0.5-mA time-averaged current, a synchrotron that accelerates the beam to 2 GeV at a 30-Hz rate, and two neutron-generating target stations. In the second phase, the 2-GeV beam is accelerated to 10 GeV by a larger RCS, increasing the facility beam power to 5 MW