Improvements to the LANSCE accelerator timing system

The Los Alamos Neutron Science Center (LANSCE) 800 MeV proton linear accelerator (linac) operates at a maximum repetition rate of twice the AC power line frequency, i.e. 120 Hz. The start of each machine cycle occurs a fixed delay after each zero-crossing of the AC line voltage. Fluctuations in the AC line frequency and phase are therefore present on all linac timing signals. Proper beam acceleration along the linac requires that the timing signals remain well synchronized to the AC line. For neutron chopper spectrometers, e.g., PHAROS at the Manuel Lujan Jr. Neutron Scattering Center, accurate neutron energy selection requires that precise synchronization be maintained between the beam-on-target arrival time and the neutron chopper rotor position. This is most easily accomplished when the chopper is synchronized to a stable, fixed frequency signal. A new zero-crossing circuit which employs a Phase-Locked Loop (PLL) has been developed to increase the phase and frequency stability of the linac timing signals and thereby improve neutron chopper performance while simultaneously maintaining proper linac operation. Results of timing signal data analysis and modeling and a description of the PLL circuit are presented.