Commissioning of the Linac4 RFQ at the 3 MeV test stand

Linac4, the future 160 MeV Hˉ injector to the CERN Proton Synchrotron Booster, is presently under construction at CERN as a first step of the planned upgrade of the LHC injectors. The low energy section of LINAC4, consisting of an ion source, a 352.2 MHz Radio Frequency Quadrupole (RFQ) and a chopper line is being commissioned in a dedicated test stand before installation in its final position in the tunnel. The RFQ is designed to accelerate a 45 keV, 70 mA, Hˉ beam to 3 MeV, with an efficiency of 95% while preserving the transverse emittance. The RFQ, a four-vane structure 3 m in length, has been designed in collaboration with CEA/IRFU and is has been fabricated at the CERN workshop. The precise fabrication has allowed achieving a field flatness of 1%. The completion of the accelerating structure in September 2012 was followed by a complete series of bead-pull measurements and by high-power conditioning to the nominal power of 0.39 MW corresponding to a voltage of 78 kV across the 3 meters. Measurements with beam are taking place during the first half of 2013.