Demonstration of high-gradient acceleration

One priority of the CLIC (Compact Linear Collider) accelerating-structure development program has been to investigate ways to achieve accelerating gradients above 150 MV/m. Two main concepts to achieve such high gradients have emerged: reduced surface field geometries and the use of alternative materials. An experimental demonstration of these two concepts has been made in CTFII (CLIC Test Facility) using three 30 GHz accelerating structures: one made entirely from copper, one with copper cavity walls and tungsten irises and one with copper cavity walls and molybdenum irises. A peak accelerating gradient of over 190 MV/m was achieved using the molybdenum-iris structure. The effect of pulse length on achievable gradient was investigated using a novel 'pulse stretcher'.