The Automatic LHC Collimator Beam-Based Alignment Software Package

The Large Hadron Collider (LHC) at CERN makes use of a complex collimation system to protect its sensitive equipment from unavoidable beam losses. The collimators are positioned around the beam respecting a strict transverse hierarchy. The position of each collimator is determined following a beam-based alignment technique which determines the required jaw settings for optimum performance. During the LHC Run 2 (2015-2018), a new automatic alignment software package was developed and used for collimator alignments throughout 2018*. This paper discusses the usability and flexibility of this new package describing the implementation in detail, as well as the latest improvements and features in preparation for Run 3 starting in 2022. The automation has already successfully decreased the alignment time by 70% in 2018** and this paper explores how to further exploit this software package. Its implementation provides a solid foundation to automatically align any new collimation configurations in the future, as well as allows for further analysis and upgrade of its individual modules.