Projects of Nuclotron modernization and Nuclotron-based ion collider facility (NICA) at JINR

One of the basic facilities at the Joint Institute for Nuclear Research (JINR) in Dubna is the 6 A GeV Nuclotron, which has replaced the old weak focusing 10-GeV proton accelerator Synchrophasotron. The first relativistic nuclear beams with the energy of 4.2 A GeV were obtained at the Synchrophasotron in 1971. Since that time, relativistic nuclear physics has been one of the main directions of the JINR research program. In the coming years, the new JINR flagship program assumes the experimental study of hot and dense strongly interacting QCD matter at the new JINR facility. This goal is proposed to be reached by (i) development of the existing Nuclotron accelerator facility as a basis for generation of intense beams over atomic mass range from protons to uranium and light polarized ions, (ii) design and construction of the Nuclotron-based heavy Ion Collider fAcility (NICA) with the maximum nucleon-nucleon center-of-mass collision energy of √s _NN = 9 GeV and averaged luminosity 10²⁷ cm⁻² s⁻¹, and (iii) design and construction of the Multipurpose Particle Detector (MPD) at intersecting beams. Realization of the project will lead to unique conditions for research activity of the world community. The NICA energy region is of major interest because the highest nuclear (baryonic) density under laboratory conditions can be reached there. Generation of intense polarized light nuclear beams aimed at investigation of polarization phenomena at the Nuclotron is foreseen. The text was submitted by the author in English.     

NICA at JINR: New prospects for exploration of quark-gluon matter

A new scientific program is proposed at the Joint Institute for Nuclear Research (JINR) in Dubna aimed at studies of hot and dense baryonic matter in the wide energy range from 2 GeV/u kinetic energy in fixed target experiments to $\sqrt {s_{NN} } = 4 - 11$ GeV/u in the collider mode. To realize this program the development of the JINR accelerator facility in high-energy physics (HEP) has been started. This facility is based on the existing superconducting synchrotron??the Nuclotron. The program foresees both experiments at the beams extracted from the Nuclotron, and the construction of a heavy-ion collider??the Nuclotron-based Ion Collider fAcility (NICA) which is designed to reach the required parameters with an average luminosity of L = 10²⁷ cm^?2 s^?1.     

Few-body Studies at Nuclotron-JINR

Recent results on the deuteron analyzing powers in dp- elastic scattering obtained at Nuclotron (JINR, Dubna) are compared with the calculations performed within relativistic multiple scattering model. The data demonstrate strong deviation form the predictions at large angles in the cms. The preliminary data on the energy dependence of the cross section in the dp → ppn reaction at 150–250 MeV/nucleon for different configurations and dp elastic scattering up to 1 GeV obtained at internal target station at Nuclotron are reported. The prospects of the further few-body studies at JINR are discussed.     

Beam-cooling methods in the NICA project

The Nuclotron-based Ion Collider Facility (NICA) is a new accelerator complex under construction at the Joint Institute for Nuclear Research (JINR) for experiments with colliding beams of heavy ions up to gold at energies as high as 4.5 × 4.5 GeV/u aimed at studying hot and dense strongly interacting nuclear matter and searching for possible indications of the mixed phase state and critical points of phase transitions. This facility comprises an ion source of the electron-string type, a 3-MeV/u linear accelerator, a 600-MeV/u superconducting booster synchrotron (Booster), a Nuclotron (upgraded superconducting synchrotron with a maximum energy of 4.5 GeV/u for ions with the charge-to-mass ratio Z/A = 1/3), and a collider consisting of two vertically separated superconducting rings with an average luminosity of 10²⁷ cm^?2 s^?1 in an energy range over 3.0 GeV/u. Beam cooling is supposed to be used in two NICA elements, the Booster, and the collider rings. The Booster is intended for the storage of ¹⁹⁷Au³¹⁺ ions to an intensity of about 4 × 10⁹ particles; their acceleration to the energy 600 MeV/u, which is sufficient for the complete stripping of nuclei (an increase in the injection energy and the charge state of ions makes the requirements for vacuum conditions in the Nuclotron less stringent); and the formation of the necessary beam emittance using the electron cooling system. Two independent beam-cooling systems, a stochastic one and an electron one, are supposed to be used in the collider. The parameters of the cooling systems, the optimum mode of operation for the collider, and the arrangement and design of the elements of the systems are discussed.     

Status of the polarized ions source for the JINR accelerator complex

The project assumes the design and construction of a universal high-intensity source of polarized deuterons (protons) using a charge-exchange plasma ionizer. The output D ⁺↑ (H ⁺↑) current of the source is expected to be at a level of 10 mA. The polarization will be up to 90% of the maximal vector (±1) for D ⁺↑ (H ⁺↑) and tensor (+1, ?2) for D ⁺↑ polarization. Realization of the project is carried out in close cooperation with INR of the RAS (Moscow). The equipment available from the CIPIOS ion source (IUCF, Bloomington, USA) is partially used for the Dubna setup. The new source at the JINR Nuclotron accelerator facility will make it possible to increase the polarized deuteron beam intensity up to the level of 10¹⁰ d/pulse. The first results of the source of polarized atoms testing are presented.     

Deep spallation cross sections in high energy protons — Uranium interactions

Cross sections of deep spallation products — from phosphorus to hafnium — formed in uranium by high energy protons (E _p ? 10 GeV) have been calculated with a simple semi-empirical formula. The results are in excellent agreement with experimental data.     

Deuteron beam polarimetry at the nuclotron

The scheme of the deuteron beam polarization measurements at Nuclotron are presented. A deuteron beam polarimeter based on the spin-asymmetry measurements in the dp-elastic scattering at large angles in center-of-mass system has been constructed at the internal target station at the Nuclotron of JINR. This polarimeter is planned to use for the measurements of the vector and tensor components of deuteron beam polarizations at the energies 270–2000 MeV simultaneously. Details on the low energy polarimeters are also discussed.     

Longitudinal dynamics of <Superscript>197</Superscript>Au<Superscript>32+</Superscript> and <Superscript>197</Superscript>Au<Superscript>79+</Superscript> ions in NICA injection chain

The main objective of the NICA project developed at the Joint Institute for Nuclear Research (JINR) is to conduct experimental studies with colliding heavy ion beams in an energy range of 1–4.5 GeV/nucleonucleon with luminosity on the level of 1 × 10²⁷ cm⁻² s⁻¹. In this paper the operation regime of the collider injection chain providing the bunch with experimentally desirable parameters at the output of the Nuclotron is considered for gold ions as an example.     

Investigation of the angular dependence of the analyzing powers in the deuteron-proton elastic scattering at the nuclotron

New polarimeter based on the asymmetry measurement in dp-elastic scattering has been constructed at internal target at Nuclotron (JINR). The result on the deuteron analyzing powers A _y , A _yy and A _xx in the deuteron-proton (dp) elastic scattering at the energies of 880 and 2000 MeV are presented. They are compared with different theoretical approaches.     

Backward emitted protons in interactions of neutrinos with nuclei in photoemulsion

Backward emitted protons with momentump>0.3 GeV/c in interactions of neutrino in the energy range 10–200 GeV with photoemulsion nuclei were investigated. Energy spectrum slope parameter of backward protons was measured to beT ₀=48.9±7.9 MeV. TheA-dependence power index of relative mean yield of backward protons was found to bea=0.68±0.12. A drop in the mean yield of backward protons at the four momentum squared over ～15 (GeV/c)² (the neutrino energy over ～50 GeV) was observed.     

Determination of spatial and energy distributions of neutrons in experiments on transmutation of radioactive waste using relativistic protons

The experiments on transmutation of ¹²⁹I and ²³⁷Np using uranium-lead targets surrounded by a paraffin moderator were performed at the Joint Institute for Nuclear Research (JINR, Russia). The targets were irradiated by 1.5 GeV and 7.4 GeV protons at the Synchrophasotron of JINR. In the frame of present work spatial and energy distributions of neutrons on the surface of the paraffin moderator were measured using SSNTD technique. It is shown that measured values of spetral indices do not pretend on the energy of incident protons but depend on the target composition. The presence of the uranium insertion softens neutron spectra.     

Research program of the NIS-GIBS project at JINR Nuclotron

The research program planned for extracted proton and relativistic nuclei beams of the JINR Nuclotron is briefly outlined in this talk. The program is to be realized with the NIS-GIBS spectrometer and consists of two parts. The first one is aimed to search for effects of nucleon polarized strangeness in production of φ and ω mesons in pp and np scattering. The latter one is devoted to the investigation of hydrogen hypernuclei isotopes.     

Spin Navigator Based on Correcting Dipoles of the JINR Nuclotron

JETP Letters - A spin navigator based on correcting dipoles has been proposed to manipulate the directions of protons spins in experiments at the Nuclotron synchrotron (JINR, Dubna). The...     

Polarimetry of the polarized proton and deuteron beams at intermediate energies

Method and results of the beam polarization measurements are presented. The measurements were carried out at the proton polarized beam of Saturne-II accelerator as well as at the JINR (Dubna) synchrophasotron vector polarized deuteron beam. The analysis of the elastic (quasi-elastic) pp-scattering polarization is used as a method of the polarization measurements. The energy range of the measurement is 1.0≤T _p ≤2.8 GeV for polarized proton and 1.66≤T _d ≤7.3 GeV for polarized deuteron beams.     

Progress in development of Nuclotron accelerator complex

The Nuclotron superconducting synchrotron was constructed in 1987–1992 [1]; it is the world’s first synchrotron based on fast cycling “window frame” electromagnets with a superconducting coil. For a design field of dipole magnets of 2 T, the magnetic rigidity is 45 T m, which corresponds to the energy of heavy nuclei (for example, gold) of 4.5 GeV/nucleon. The Nuclotron accelerator complex is currently being upgraded (the Nuclotron-M project); this upgrade is considered a key part of the first stage of fulfilling the new Joint Institute for Nuclear Research (JINR) project: the Nuclotron-based Ion Collider fAcility and Multi-Purpose Detector (NICA/MPD). The most important task of this new project is the preparation of basic Nuclotron systems for its reliable operation as part of the NICA accelerator complex. Basic results of activity on the project, which started in 2007, are presented and the results of the last Nuclotron runs are analyzed.     

Interactions between 4He nuclei and protons at intermediate energies

Since the early 1970s, experiments have been performed to investigate the fragmentation of the lightest nuclei (d, ³H, ³He, and ⁴He) on protons at intermediate energies (～0.2–2 GeV per nucleon). These experiments were set up in ITEP and LHE JINR and realized in an exclusive approach with the help of liquid hydrogen bubble chambers. This investigation is of great interest from two points of view: first, the possibility of detailed theoretical analysis of the data obtained in 4π geometry on the basis of a good understanding of the structure of the wavefunctions of these nuclei and, second, the search for exotic interaction mechanisms. This overview presents the latest, most interesting results of the ITEP experiment on the study of ⁴Hep interactions at ⁴He momenta of 2.7 and 5 GeV/c, on cross sections, elastic scattering, pair correlations of secondary nucleons, cumulative production of nucleons and the lightest nuclei (d, ³H, and ³He), the main features of exclusive reactions, and the search for possible multiquark bag production (dibaryons and tribaryons). The essential results of the independent JINR experiment at 8.6 and 13.6 GeV/c also come under discussion.     

Search for η-mesic nuclei in the reaction d + C at JINR

Results of a search for quasi-bound states of the η-meson and a target nucleus obtained during several years using the internal target at the Nuclotron d-beam are presented. Formation of η-mesic nuclei was studied in the reaction d + C in the energy interval 1.5 to 2.2 GeV/nucl. Decay products of S₁₁ resonances excited by η-mesons captured by nucleons in the nuclear target have been analyzed. Measurements were performed with a scintillation spectrometer SCAN. Analysis of obtained data is presented.