Space charge effects and intensity limits of electron-cooled bunched beams

For stripping injection of proton beams in the IUCF Cooler, electron cooling permits us to accumulate beam currents several times higher than what can be obtained without cooling. Paradoxically, the electron cooling system also appears to be responsible for limiting peak currents in the ring at 45 MeV to about 6 mA. Thus the tool which allows us to accumulate beam also prevents us from accumulating more beam. At this point we can account for some of the observed beam features when we include space charge effects. Presently, we do not, however, have any techniques to counteract the space charge effects and thus raise this intensity limit.