Research Projects

The electrostatic ion beam trap (EIBT) is a unique trapping device that uses electrostatic fields to trap keV ions in a compact volume. It is used for studying gas-phase dynamics, photoionization, lifetime measurements, and mass spectrometry applications of trapped ions. This project aims to investigate many-body system dynamics with long-range interactions using particle-in-cell (PIC) numerical techniques to understand the cooling mechanism and mass spectrometry aspects of trapped ions in an EIBT. The trapped ions behavior in the EIBT is strongly influenced by space charge interactions and potentials on the mirror electrodes. Two modes of operation can be tuned based on the potential profile of the mirror electrodes: the dispersive mode for studying dragging efficiency and cooling dynamics of trapped ions and the self-bunching mode for understanding the precise use of EIBT as a high-resolution mass spectrometer. Experimental results highlight the importance of space charge interactions in the cooling of ion beams in EIBT. However, no theoretical results study ion-ion interactions and explain experimental findings. A recent PIC numerical technique allows comprehensive study via simulation that can be compared directly to experimental results. The proposal also focuses on the study of ion-ion interactions and their impact on the mass spectrometric application of the EIBT. Preliminary results show that peak coalescence is a primary concern for many ions, which can be minimized by trapping a relatively small number of ions. Further studies and simulations are required to fully understand and characterize this effect for smaller to larger masses with and without space charge interactions.