Awake: the Proof-of-principle R&D; Experiment at CERN

The Advanced Proton Driven Plasma Wakefield Acceleration Experiment (AWAKE) is a proof-of-principle R&D; experiment at CERN. It is the world’s first proton driven plasma wakefield acceleration experiment, using a high-energy proton bunch to drive a plasma wakefield for electron beam acceleration. The AWAKE experiment will be installed in the former CNGS facility and uses the 400 GeV proton beam bunches from the SPS, which will be sent to a plasma source. An electron beam will be injected into the plasma cell to probe the accelerating wakefield. Challenging modifications in the area and new installations are required for AWAKE. First proton beam to the experiment is expected late 2016. The accelerating electron physics will start late 2017. This paper gives an overview of the project from a physics and engineering point of view, it describes the main activities, the milestones, the organizational set-up for the project management and coordination.