Present: J. Billowes, B. Blank, K. Blaum, Y. Blumenfeld, P. Butler, R. Catherall, J. Cederkall, L. Fraile, M.J. Garcia-Borge, A. Jokinen, Y. Kadi, M. Kowalska, N. Marginean, K. Riisager, D. Santonocito, P. Van Duppen

Excused: S. Harissopulos, M. Henry, R. Losito, S. Siem

Invited: S. Banerjee, U. Datta Pramanik, S. Lahiri

The meeting starts at 08:30 h

1. Introductory remarks by the chairperson

The chairperson opens the meeting and informs the committee that M. Henry, S. Harissopulos and S. Siem are excused.  M.J. Garcia-Borge goes on to welcome Bertram Blank as the new French representative replacing Serge Franchoo along with the invited delegation from India, S. Banerjee, U. Datta Pramanik and S. Lahiri.

2. Approval of the minutes of the 61st meeting.

The minutes of the 61st ISCC meeting are accepted without any alterations.

3. Technical developments and BE & EN Department news (R. Catherall) (see overheads)

R. Catherall begins by discussing recent target ion source development including the first online operation of a Helicon Source and the improved yields of Hg beams with the VADIS ion source. He then informs the committee that good progress is being made in adapting ISOLDE drawings to the CATIA system; the committee requests that Power Point versions be made available on the ISOLDE website.

The very successful 2011 REX campaign is then summarised in which a record number of shifts were delivered. The status of a number of technical issues at REX is summarised and the committee is told that, in 2012, 2ms RF pulse length will be available for slow extraction and there will be improved vacuum in the RFQ section for highly charged beams.

RILIS operation is next to be discussed with ion beams of sixteen elements being produced and lasers used for 2310 hours. This is a first step beyond the 2000h/year limit seen in previous years. The status of the ionization scheme development for refractory elements at the LARIS laboratory is mentioned.

R. Catherall then turns to machine issues and summarises the status of certain issues, such as the GLM deflector, water cooling, the Faraday cage piston and the pico-ampere meters, as well as the action being taken. The committee is told that due to the unreliability of the fast tape station (the tape breaks even when not in operation) it will not yet be inserted into the central beam line. ISOLDE collaborators headed by P. Dessagne at IPHC in Strasbourg will be consulted and it is hoped to mend the tape station in-house.  R. Catherall summarises how a problem with the HRS Robot was solved and presents the status of the robot upgrade. The new robot, delivery of which is expected in April 2012, will be installed and tested in a dedicated hall before it is installed in the actual setup.

Regarding physics at ISOLDE during the winter of 2012/2013, R. Catherall informs the committee that water, ventilation and cooling will be cut in the middle of December for HIE-ISOLDE installation.

An overview of the number of ALARA interventions since the last meeting is presented and the committee is informed that a safety collaboration agreement has been signed between CERN and CEA/IRFU for Pb-Bi ISOLDE target development.

R. Catherall summarises the civil engineering work which has so far been carried out for HIE ISOLDE. Construction started in July 2011 and so far the transport hangar has been removed, the wall of building 170 has been cut and the terrain flattened. The new SAS should be built during November and the controlled access should be moved during the shutdown in December. All civil engineering is scheduled to be finished in July 2012 ready for the start of installation of electrical systems, cooling and ventilation.

The new look EN-STI-RBS section is presented which has recently grown from 8 to 22 people (due in large part to the hiring of CATHI fellows) with another 2 people about to join.

4. Scheduling and PH Department news (M. Kowalska / Y. Blumenfeld) (see overheads)

The results of the vote for the new ISOLDE logo are presented and it is asked that the logo in the file at the bottom of this page now be used in all matters concerning ISOLDE:

M. Kowalska then summarises the running period for 2011. Physics started at ISOLDE on May 2^nd and will finish on November 21^st giving about 29 weeks of physics. Out of the 440 shifts scheduled for accepted IS experiments about 360 (this is a very rough estimate) were delivered successfully. The committee is told that this year’s technical stops have not caused much disruption to the ISOLDE schedule. However certain technical issues did require alterations to the schedule between July and November; these alterations are discussed.

M. Kowalska goes on to summarise the online runs since the previous ISCC meeting of which the large majority were very successful. The ISOLDE technical group is thanked for its support and commitment to deliver the best possible beam.

The running of ISOLDE in 2012 is then discussed. Physics will start one month earlier than usual on April 2^nd and the schedule will be split into three parts instead of two to allow more flexibility in case of problems. There are 10 rooms booked at the CERN hostel for ISOLDE users and the reservation is held until two weeks after each part of the schedule is released. To have one of these hostel rooms, users should telephone the hostel directly.

The status of experiments is then summarised and M. Kowalska then goes on to present the news from ISOLDE including the fact that a set of new ISOLDE posters are under preparation and that, since September, J. Thiboud has been available to assist experiments with such things as mounting, machining and vacuum pumps.

The committee is informed of ISOLDE events that have taken place both inside and outside CERN and recent CERN articles about ISOLDE. M. Kowalska then goes on to discuss safety issues including the recent problems experienced with permanent dosimeters by some users who have not followed the radiation protection course. Web-based and on-site RP training are under discussion for 2012 but users are strongly encouraged to take the course while at CERN to avoid problems on future visits to ISOLDE.

M. Kowalska then presents the current schedule for the 2013 long CERN shutdown. Physics should continue at ISOLDE until the end of November 2012 and then there could only be 2 weeks of offline physics due to work connected to HIE-ISOLDE in 2013. The injectors should then restart in April/May 2014.

Y. Blumenfeld then informs the committee of the present situation at ISOLDE regarding students and fellows:

• There are presently 2 CERN students (H. Tornqvist until August 2012 and K. Lynch until Aug. 2013).
• Several students are partially supported by the collaboration
• The fellows at ISOLDE are J. Pakarinen (until 12/2011), D. Yordanov (until 12/2011 but 3 month extension has been requested), T. Cocolios (until 07/2012) and J. Kurcewicz (starts 12/2011). The last of whom will be looking into digital data acquisition systems which could be used for HIE-ISOLDE and he will be asked to present his initial ideas at the first ISCC meeting in 2012.
• The next fellows committee will be held on 15/11/2011 and ISOLDE is hoping for at least one new fellow.
• P. Walker is a Project Associate at ISOLDE until at least 03/2012. Requests for associate positions are encouraged for the next selection committee in May.

5. Budget 2011 and projection for 2012 (Y. Blumenfeld)

The full budget report for 2011 will be given at the first ISCC meeting in 2012 but Y. Blumenfeld tells the committee that Denmark, Finland, Spain, Ireland and France have not yet paid their contributions for 2011, while Norway has not paid for 2009, 2010 and 2011 and no payment has ever been received from Greece.

Y. Blumenfeld thanks the German representative for the additional contribution that has been received from Germany for HIE-ISOLDE.

6. ENSAR @ ISOLDE (Y. Blumenfeld)

Y. Blumenfeld summarises the present situation of ENSAR funding at ISOLDE and informs the committee that most of the remaining funds will be used up during 2012 due to the long CERN shutdown in 2013.

It is suggested that T. Stora and F. Wenander should be invited to give presentations at the next ISCC meeting about ongoing activities within the JRAs ACTILAB and PREMASS.

7. INTC matters (P. Butler)

P. Butler informs the committee that in 2012 the dates of the INTC meetings will be 1st

February and 31st October while it is very unlikely that a meeting will be held in July. The

meeting in February will be open to ISOLDE proposals, preferably those requiring no new

beam development to avoid having a large backlog of shifts during the long CERN shutdown,

while the October meeting will be dedicated to HIE-ISOLDE proposals.

It is commented that pressure is increasing on the time available at meetings of both the

INTC and ISCC meetings. (Since the meeting it has been decided to start the open session of

the February 2012 INTC meeting in the morning (Feb. 1) and to move the ISCC meeting to

the afternoon of the day before, i.e. 31st January).

8. M.O.U. issues – Indian participation at ISOLDE (see overheads)

The chairperson welcomes the Indian visitors and thanks all three for agreeing to give a presentation to the ISCC:

• S. Banerjee: The community interested in collaboration with ISOLDE.
• U. Datta Pramanik: Summary of physics presently carried out by the Indian Nuclear Physics community and what could be undertaken at ISOLDE.
• S. Lahiri: Future possible projects the collaboration could produce.

The ISOLDE collaboration committee gives it approval for India to join the ISOLDE Collaboration.

9. Report on TDR for TSR (K. Blaum)(see overheads)

K. Blaum presents the important steps taken so far in the study of the possible installation of the MPIK Heidelberg TSR at HIE-ISOLDE. The Technical Design Report for the TSR@ISOLDE project which is planned for the February 2012 INTC meeting is almost ready for submission. The community involved in the project is steadily growing with 120 co-authors of the TDR from about 20 institutes.

The physics cases for the TSR@ISOLDE project are presented along with some technical details of the MPIK Heidelberg storage ring.

The choice of the possible Jura-West site for the TSR is explained and then the following points are made:

• A detailed estimation of the costs and manpower requirements are in preparation.
• Funding requests to different agencies are under discussion.
• The ideal time schedule would be to have the building ready at the end of 2013 (the cost of the building work would have to be covered by CERN), to move the ring in 2014 and to commission and start the TSR in 2015.
• Financial support from the ISOLDE Collaboration would be needed in order to realise this project.

Finally a number of possible experiments at the TSR at ISOLDE are discussed.

The committee agrees that the ideal time schedule mentioned above would be very difficult to achieve.

 A discussion follows about how to proceed in trying to obtain support and funding from CERN and whether the TSR should be regarded as a facility or as a spectrometer, i.e. as an experiment. It is agreed by the committee that after the project has been to the INTC and the Research Board an approach should be made directly to S. Bertolucci.

10. Status of HIE-ISOLDE (Y. Kadi)(see overheads)

Regarding the HIE-ISOLDE project organization, the committee is informed by Y. Kadi that, after the departure of M. Pasini, the new mandate of the Technical Coordinator is under approval. These responsibilities will initially be taken over by Y. Kadi. SRF activities within HIE-ISOLDE are the responsibility of the BE/RF group and will be overseen by the Physicist in charge Walter Venturini Delsolaro. Beam dynamics activities, however, are undertaken by the TE/ABT group and the person responsible is Brennan Goddard.

Y. Kadi goes on to summarise the main highlights and R&D activities of the HIE-ISOLDE project. The highlights include the fact that invitations for tenders are being launched for the Cryogenic plant and HVAC system while market surveys are underway for a number of projects. The final recommendations from the SC cavity review are presented as well as the action already taken. The overview of R&D activities covers the status of the pre-series High-Beta cavity, the High-Beta Cryomodule Design, RF measurements and sputtering developments. Y. Kadi is happy to inform the committee that the clean-room has now been approved by CERN as well as the extra budget of 700kCHF required for its construction.

 The presentation then turns to general safety issues. It is shown that there is a high risk of oxygen deficiency if safety valves rupture and cause the release of helium. There is also concern about the propagation of noise both inside and outside CERN. Consolidation is required regarding both these issues. The committee is told that the study of the increased risk of radiation along with the need to respect radiation limits show that increased shielding may be required to avoid the HIE-ISOLDE experimental hall becoming a controlled area.

Y. Kadi goes on to mention the status of the design study for the intensity upgrade and summarises the next steps that will be taken in the HIE-ISOLDE R&D projects.

The committee is then shown the present planning, modular installation and the schedule of the HIE-ISOLDE project. Y. Kadi goes on to review the status of the project budget. Concern is expressed that the funds that still have to be found from external sources should not come into competition with the funds required for the TSR@ISOLDE project. A comparison between projected and actual project expenditure is presented which shows the project to be well on track.

The manpower position of the project is presented with 95FTE CERN staff over 5 years and 70FTE fellows. Funding requests have been made for three more fellows for the HIE-ISOLDE project: one in the BE department to upgrade the present scenario of the HIE-ISOLDE linac, one in the TE department working 50% on beam dynamics and one in the EN department preparing mechanical design specifications. There are already 15 CATHI positions that have been filled while 5 are still open.

The committee is informed that a MoU is in preparation for collaboration with IPN-Orsay regarding cavity RF testing while both the Korean and Indian authorities are considering applications to join the ISOLDE collaboration. The funding application to the Wallenberg Foundation is now on the priority list and a decision is expected in April 2012.

Y. Kadi concludes by summarising the HIE-ISOLDE activities in the near future.

11. A.O.B

• The next ISCC meeting will be held on Tuesday January 31st at 13:30.

The meeting ends at 13:15.