Recent results from the Paul Trap Simulator Experiment

The Paul Trap Simulator Experiment (PTSX) is a compact laboratory facility whose purpose is to simulate the nonlinear dynamics of intense charged particle beam propagation over large distances through an alternating-gradient transport system. The simulation is possible because the quadrupole electric fields of the cylindrical Paul trap exert radial forces on the charged particles that are analogous to the radial forces that a periodic focusing quadrupole magnetic field exert on the beam particles in the beam frame. Initial experiments clearly demonstrate the loss of confinement when the vacuum phase advance σ_v of the system exceeds 90°. Recent experiments show that PTSX is able to successfully trap plasmas of moderate intensity for thousands of equivalent lattice periods.