Polarized $^3$He Target in High Magnetic Field at CLAS12

A nuclear spin polarized $^3$He target provides a unique advantage as an effective polarized neutron target in spin-dependent measurements of electron scattering from the neutron. Although optical pumping techniques for polarization of $^3$He in low-magnetic-field environments have produced successful scattering targets, increased wall relaxation has limited the effectiveness of these targets at high magnetic fields. Recent developments in high-magnetic-field optical pumping, including a polarized $^3$He ion source at RHIC for the EIC, have opened the possibility of a polarized $^3$He target within high-magnetic-field experimental facilities such as the CLAS12 spectrometer in Hall B at Jefferson Lab. A double-cell cryogenic target using the metastability exchange optical pumping method\footnote{J.~Maxwell and R.~Milner, arXiv:1911.06650} has been designed for a proposed experiment of spin-dependent electron scattering from a polarized $^3$He target at CLAS12\footnote{JLab Conditionally Approved Proposal PR12-20-002: {\it A Program of Spin-Dependent Electron Scattering from a Polarized $^3$He Target in CLAS12}, Co-Spokespeople: H.~Avakian, J.~Maxwell, R.~Milner, D.~Nguyen}. In this talk, the conceptual design, recent development, and future work of such a target will be presented.