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A master's thesis from Aalborg University
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Modelling, Control and Stability Analysis of an RF Cavity in CERNs LINAC4

Author

Term

4. term

Publication year

2020

Abstract

Dette speciale undersøger, hvordan man kan forbedre feedback-reguleringssløjferne, der styrer den radiofrekvente (RF) accelerationskavitet i CERNs lineære partikelaccelerator LINAC4. I de fleste lineære acceleratorer forenkles kaviteterne som et førsteordens lavpasfilter, og beam loading—at strålen trækker energi ud af kaviteten—kompenseres med PI- eller LQ-regulatorer. Her modelleres kaviteten som et andenordens system, som beskriver spændingsdynamikken i kaviteten mere præcist end den sædvanlige førsteordensmodel. Arbejdet designer også en Kalman-observatør (en estimator, der kombinerer en model med forsinkede målinger) til at håndtere forsinkelser og en LQR-regulator til at korrigere for beam loading, og det gennemfører en stabilitetsanalyse af det lukkede feedback-system. Ved at inkludere forsinkede tilstande i Kalman-predictoren kan observatøren estimere aktuelle tilstande ud fra forsinkede udgangsmålinger. At tilføre et skøn over beam loadings effekt på kavitetsspændingen som input til Kalman-filteret forbedrer responsen markant, med kortere reaktionstid, mindre undersving og kortere indsvingsningstid. Stabilitetsanalysen viser, at afhængigt af regulatorens indstilling kan systemet tåle parameterafvigelser på op til cirka 25% i forhold til den virkelige kavitet, før det bliver ustabilt.

This thesis examines how to improve the feedback control loops that regulate the radio-frequency (RF) accelerating cavity in CERN’s LINAC4 linear particle accelerator. In most linear accelerators, these cavities are simplified as a first-order low-pass filter, and beam loading—the beam drawing energy from the cavity—is corrected with PI or LQ controllers. Here, the cavity is modeled as a second-order system, which captures cavity-voltage dynamics more accurately than the usual first-order model. The work also designs a Kalman observer (an estimator that combines a model with delayed measurements) to handle delays and an LQR controller to correct for beam loading, and it analyzes the stability of the resulting closed-loop system. Including delayed states in the Kalman predictor allows the observer to estimate current states from delayed output measurements. Feeding an estimate of the beam loading effect on cavity voltage into the Kalman filter markedly improves the response to beam loading, reducing reaction time, undershoot, and settling time. The stability analysis shows that, depending on controller tuning, the system can tolerate parameter differences of up to about 25% relative to the real cavity before it becomes unstable.

[This abstract was generated with the help of AI]