Beam-beam instability

The subject of beam-beam instability has been studied since the invention of the colliding beam storage rings. Today, with several colliding beam storage rings in operation, it is not yet fully understood and remains an outstanding problem for the storage ring designers. No doubt that good progress has been made over the years, but what we have at present is still rather primitive. It is perhaps possible to divide the beam-beam subject into two areas: one on luminosity optimization and another on the dynamics of the beam-beam interaction. The former area concerns mostly the design and operational features of a colliding beam storage ring, while the later concentrates on the experimental and theoretical aspects of the beam-beam interaction. Although both areas are of interest, our emphasis is on the second area only. In particular, we are most interested in the various possible mechanisms that cause the beam-beam instability