The RHIC accelerating cavity prototype tuner

The RHIC Accelerating System runs at 26.7 MHz and is required to have an operating range of 85 kHz during the acceleration cycle. Since it also must provide sufficient range to cover manufacturing errors and temperature variation, a requirement of 300 kHz has been specified. A mechanical approach acting on the cavity accelerating gap has been chosen for financial reasons over a ferrite approach. A prototype has been constructed and fully tested on the existing test cavity, using the tuning loop feedback circuitry developed for this task. Results from both the loop response and the power tests of the prototype indicate that this design will successfully meet the performance requirements for the RHIC Accelerating Cavity