Development of Upgraded Magnetic Instrumentation for CERN Real-Time Reference Field Measurement Systems

The control of five of the accelerators in the CERN injector chain (PS, PS Booster, SPS, LEIR and AD) is based upon real-time measurements in a reference magnet. These so-called “B-train” systems include a field marker to signal the achievement of a given field value, complemented by one or more pick-up coils to integrate flux changes. Recently, some concerns were raised about long-term reliability and performance improvements, in terms of both resolution and operational flexibility, for these systems. This paper reports the status of three related R&D activities, namely: the development of a novel dynamic NMR field marker for the PS; a campaign aimed at the detailed measurement of the magnetic state of a PS main magnet; and the design of a standardized electronic signal acquisition and conditioning system.