Design and High Power Measurements of a 3 GHz Rotary Joint for Medical Applications

The TUrning LInac for Protontherapy (TULIP) project requires the transport of RF power from modulator/klystron systems at rest on the floor to the linac structures mounted on a rotating gantry, via a waveguide system that can operate over a range of angles of rotation. A waveguide rotary joint capable of transporting RF power at 3 GHz and up to 20 MW has been designed and built in collaboration between TERA Foundation, CERN Beams and CERN Engineering Departments. A high-power test of the prototype has been performed at the CLIC Test Facility (CTF3), at CERN. The design and the results of the tests are reported in this article.