Experimental Study of Crystal Channelling at CERN-SPS for Beam-Halo Cleaning

An efficient and robust collimation system is mandatory for any superconducting hadron collider, in particular for the LHC, which will store a beam of unprecedented high intensity and energy. The usage of highly efficient and short primary bent-crystal collimators might be a possibility for reaching nominal and ultimate LHC intensity. Over the last years, groups in Italy (Ferrara) and Russia (St. Petersburg) have developed crystal production methods, that considerably improve the crystal quality. These developments led, in turn, to a surprising increase in the channeling efficiency and to the recent observation of the â€ﾜvolume reflection” mechanism. The aim of the proposed experiment is the setup of a beam test facility, directing primary protons from the SPS onto a bent silicon crystal, and the quantitative study of single-pass efficiency for all involved processes. Final goal will be the extrapolation of important information on the feasibility of a crystal collimator for halo cleaning in the LHC. The experiment will be performed in the H8 beamline at the CERN SPS where a beam with very small divergence can be provided thus representing a unique facility for tests and characterization of crystals to be used for particle channeling studies.