Recent Intensity Increase in the CERN Accelerator Chain

Future requests for protons from the physics community at CERN, especially after the start-up of the CNGS experiments in 2006, can only be satisfied by a substantial increase in the SPS beam intensity per pulse. In September 2004 a three-week beam run was dedicated to high intensity; all accelerators in the chain were pushed to their limits to study intensity restrictions and find possible solutions. New record intensities were obtained in the accelerators of the PS & SPS Complex with this type of beam which is different from the nominal LHC beam. The challenges in producing this high-intensity beam are described, together with the measures needed to make it fully operational.