Electron-Beam-Ion-Source (EBIS) Modeling Progress at FAR-TECH, Inc.

FAR-TECH, Inc. has been developing a numerical modeling tool for Electron-Beam-Ion-Sources (EBISs). The tool consists of two codes. One is the Particle-Beam-Gun-Simulation (PBGUNS) code to simulate a steady state electron beam and the other is the EBIS-Particle-In-Cell (EBIS-PIC) code to simulate ion charge breeding with the electron beam. PBGUNS, a 2D (r, z) electron gun and ion source simulation code, has been extended for efficient modeling of EBISs and the work was presented previously. EBIS-PIC is a space charge self-consistent PIC code and is written to simulate charge breeding in an axisymmetric 2D (r, z) device allowing for full three-dimensional ion dynamics. This 2D code has been successfully benchmarked with Test-EBIS measurements at Brookhaven National Laboratory. For long timescale (> tens of ms) ion charge breeding, the 2D EBIS-PIC simulations take a long computational time making the simulation less practical. Most of the EBIS charge breeding, however, may be modeled in 1D (r) as the axial dependence of the ion dynamics may be ignored in the trap. Where 1D approximations are valid, simulations of charge breeding in an EBIS over long time scales become possible, using EBIS-PIC together with PBGUNS. Initial 1D results are presented. The significance of the magnetic field to ion dynamics, ion cooling effects due to collisions with neutral gas, and the role of Coulomb collisions are presented.