Status of the Brookhaven National Laboratory high current electron beam ion source test stand

As part of a new, compact heavy ion injector for the AGS/RHIC complex at Brookhaven National Laboratory we are developing an electron beam ion source (EBIS) that would satisfy present and future requirements. Such a source should be capable of producing intensities of, e.g., Au35+ ions of about 3x10(9) particles/pulse or U45+ of about 2x10(9) particles/pulse. To achieve this, the required e-beam intensity is 10 A, at a pulse length of 100 ms. An EBIS test stand has been constructed, designed for the full electron beam power and having close to 1/2 of the trap length of an EBIS for RHIC. Initial electron beam tests have resulted in a 50 mu s, 13 A electron beam. Ion production and extraction has been shown with a 3.1 A, 50 ms electron beam, achieving an ion yield of 19 nC/pulse (neutralization degree of 61%); fast extraction trials have yielded extracted ion pulses of 1 mA peak current and 18 mu s at FWHM. Details of the test stand construction, results of the electron beam studies, and properties of the extracted ion pulse are presented. (C) 2000 American Institute of Physics. [S0034-6748(00)60302-7].