The MIT HEDP Accelerator Facility for Diagnostic Development for OMEGA, Z, and the NIF

The MIT HEDP Accelerator Facility utilizes a 135-keV, linear electrostatic ion accelerator; DT and DD neutron sources; and two x-ray sources for development and characterization of nuclear diagnostics for OMEGA, Z, and the NIF. The accelerator generates DD and D³He fusion products through the acceleration of D⁺ ions onto a ³He-doped Erbium-Deuteride target. Capability to generate T³He fusion products through the acceleration of ³He²⁺ ions onto an Erbium-Tritide target has also been recently been developed and will be discussed in this contribution. Accurately characterized fusion product rates up to 10⁶ s⁻¹ are routinely achieved. The DT and DD neutron sources generate up to 6´10⁸ and 1´10⁷ neutrons/s, respectively. One x-ray generator is a thick-target W source with a peak energy of 225 keV; the other uses Cu, Mo, or Ti elemental tubes to generate x-rays with a maximum energy of 40 keV. Diagnostics developed and calibrated at this facility include CR-39-based mono-energetic particle radiography, charged-particle spectrometers, neutron detectors, and the particle Time-Of-Flight (pTOF) CVD-diamond-based bang time detector. The accelerator is also a valuable hands-on tool for student education at MIT. This work was supported in part by the U.S. DoE, SNL, LLE and LLNL.