The AGS booster beam loss monitor system

A beam loss monitor system has been developed for the Brookhaven National Laboratory booster accelerator, and was designed for use with intensities of up to 1.5*10/sup 13/ protons and carbon to gold ions at 50-3*10/sup 9/ ions per pulse. The authors discuss the design, construction, and operation of the system. This system achieves a significant advance over the present AGS (Alternating Gradient Synchrotron) system by improving the sensitivity, dynamic range, and data acquisition. In addition to the large dynamic range achievable, it is adaptively shifted when high losses are detected. The system uses up to 80 argon-filled ion chambers as detectors, as well as newly designed electronics for processing and digitizing detector outputs. The hardware simultaneously integrates each detector output, interfaces to the beam interrupt systems, and digitizes all 80 channels to 12 b at 170 kHz.<>