The LINAC4 Project at CERN

As the first step of a long-term programme aiming at an increase in the LHC luminosity, CERN is building a new 160 MeV H¯ linear accelerator, Linac4, to replace the ageing 50 MeV Linac2 as injector to the PS Booster (PSB). Linac4 is an 86-m long normal-conducting linac made of an H¯ source, a Radio Frequency Quadrupole (RFQ), a chopping line and a sequence of three accelerating structures: a Drift-Tube Linac (DTL), a Cell-Coupled DTL (CCDTL) and a Pi-Mode Structure (PIMS). The civil engineering has been recently completed, and construction of the main accelerator components has started with the support of a network of international collaborations. The low-energy section up to 3 MeV including a 3-m long 352 MHz RFQ entirely built at CERN is in the final construction phase and is being installed on a dedicated test stand. The present schedule foresees beam commissioning of the accelerator in the new tunnel in 2013/14; the moment of connection of the new linac to the CERN accelerator chain will depend on the LHC schedule for long shut-downs.