THE INTERNATIONAL ADVISORY COMMITTEE

ON THE J-PARC PROJECTREPORT
2 April 2009

Meeting 9 -10 March 2009
Tokai, Japan

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CONTENTSEXECUTIVE SUMMARY

3RECOMMENDATIONS
Subsidiary Recommendations

6
7

GENERAL STATUS OF THE PROJECT

9ACCELERATOR SYSTEM STATUS
Basic Functionality of the Accelerator Complex
Performance limitations and risks
Breakdown in the RFQ (LINAC)
Magnetic Alloy Cores in the RF Systems
Main Ring Dipole Power Supply
Mitigation plans in place
Impact on operations
Organizational structure
Post-commissioning performance plans

11
11

PARTICLE AND NUCLEAR PHYSICS
Hadron Experiments
Neutrino Experiments

18
18
19

MATERIALS AND LIFE SCIENCES
Target System
Neutron Scattering Instruments
Oversight of Experimental Systems
Future Developments
MLF Muon Facility

20

12
13
14
14
15
15
17

20

22

USER INTERFACE, SAFETY and COMPUTING
User Interface
SafetyInformatics and Computing
User Advisory Committee

23
24
25
25

NUCLEAR TRANSMUTATION

26

APPENDIX I Agenda for 8th International Advisory Committee J-PARC 28
APPENDIX II Committee Members

30

APPENDIX III A-TAC Report 2009

31

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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
The International Advisory Committee (IAC) for the J-PARC joint
project of the Japanese Atomic Energy Agency (JAEA) and the HighEnergy Accelerator Research Organisation (KEK) met between 9 and 10
March 2009 at JAEA, Tokai and toured the construction site of J-PARC.
The IAC had reports from the Accelerator Technical Advisory
Committee (A-TAC), the Muon Science Experimental Facilities
Advisory Committee (MUSAC) and the Neutron Technical Advisory
Committee (N-TAC), which met the previous week at Tokai. The agendaof the IAC meeting is attached as Appendix I and the membership at
Appendix II.
The IAC has heard in its meeting a truly impressive delivery ofoutcomes from the construction phase. The standard of achievement onentering the operational phase meets international best standards for all
aspects of this complex project. The three main streams are theconclusion of the infrastructure and building program on budget and ontime, the proof that the accelerators from lowest to highest energy arecapable of 300kW operation and the quality of major facility andinstrument installation are at or will reach world's best levels.
All of the major milestones for the project, as scheduled in 2007 havebeen reached since the last IAC, except for completion of the neutrino
experimental hall which is expected in April 2009. The report on theneutrino project was quite outstanding.
The milestones reached are: February 2008 - a proton beam power of 5
kW/pulse (130 kW equiv) was circulated in the RCS and in May 2008,
injection, RF capture and extraction of 3 GeV beams to the Main Ring.
The first production of neutrons on the mercury target of the MLF wason 30 May 2008 and all indications are that this major development is a
success. A beam power of 12 kW/pulse (300 kW equiv.) was extracted
on 26 September at 3 GeV leading to the production of muons andfurther impressive results from the neutron instruments. Neutron andmuon beams (at powers comparable to those at the KENS facility) weremade available for General Users on 23 December.

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At the main ring, acceleration of beams to 30 GeV occurred on 12
December and first extraction of the 30 GeV beams to the Hadron
Experimental Hall was on 27 January 2009. The Materials and Life
Sciences Facility was formally opened to users on 16 December 2008
and a celebration of the end of the Phase 1 project will be held in July
2009.
This catalogue of success, achieved in a timely manner, is a great tributeto the J-PARC Center, the energy and quality of the Director and staff of
J-PARC, the parent organizations and Japanese industry - who havemade it possible. It illustrates the potential for Japan of the asset createdby the two investing partners JAEA and KEK. J-PARC is on thethreshold of great and lasting international impact. The continuity of
JAEA’s and KEK’s full support is essential to this.
The "ramp up" of beam power in the operation phase has revealed some
defects in component systems, notably the RFQ, the RF cavity chokes
and the "ripples" on the main ring power supply. Such things are
expected for innovative accelerator systems such as J-PARC and are partof the initial operational commissioning. All can be rectified - somerequiring research during low power operation. Recommendations forthis are made in the text of this report. Their focus is to allow continuing
instrument based experimentation while restoring the "ramp-up" process
to deliver projected power to the Neutrino, Hadron and MLF sectors assoon as possible.
The IAC has suggested that the J-PARC Director define budget andproject targets for JFY2009-2010 to deal with the evolving accelerator
conditioning whilst embracing a continued 400MeV injection upgrade,the continuity of user access to the MLF facility and the early productionof neutrino beams - even at the expense of delaying the user program.
Spares for the operation phase are very low in all departments. The
conditioning process for the accelerators - while user access andinstrument testing continue - makes this matter urgent. The IAC, isconfident that the J-PARC staff is fully capable in terms of expertise anddedication to overcome the current issues.
In addressing the "conditioning" matter by component replacement,
work must be continued and international collaborations maintained on
the accelerator and neutron target systems. The operation phase must

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therefore contain an R&D component as well as general operations anduser facilitation components. The budgetary emphasis at this stage must
be on sustainability in the next 4-5 years as recommended in the 2007
IAC report.
The IAC welcomes the continued development of planning andorganizational strength within the J-PARC Center - as an advantage forall users.
There has been a positive response to our past
recommendations but defined task forces need to be set for the present
recovery programs. Common needs for the quickest progress to highpower for all sectors require this coordination. The points made in 2008
are still valid. Establishment of an overarching schedule for beamcommissioning, a plan for accelerator running in JFY2009 and the Users
Steering Committee are positive steps to a planned "proton economy" forthe Facility.
The Committee welcomes the re-appointment of Professor Shoji
Nagamiya as J-PARC Director and congratulates him and his staff on the
exceptional progress made in all parts of the project. The papers
distributed before the meeting expedited the IAC's work by allowing
IAC members to form and discuss views on key policy issues before themeeting. The IAC thanks again the J-PARC Director, Professor
Nagamiya, and the project team for the preparation and the openness of
discussion at the IAC.

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IAC Recommendations
STRATEGY
Recommendation: The IAC recommends that J-PARC, JAEA and
KEK management be fully engaged in a joint effort to develop thefacility commissioning and exploitation strategy to maximize thescientific return from the investments made in the J-PARC project.
The strategy should establish short-term and long-term priorities forthe many remaining technical tasks as well as the resources needed fora timeline that keeps the highest priority experiments internationallycompetitive.
BUDGET
Recommendation: That as J-PARC enters full commissioning and theinitial experimental phase, KEK and JAEA give the strongest support
to the Japanese Government for a strong J-PARC operational budget
in JFY2009-2010 noting that in 2007 the IAC recommended an"operational budget - so that systematic improvement of theaccelerator system and instruments can be done within theenvelope of about 190 Oku Yen per annum (estimated last year) at
full operation after 2008."
Recommendation: That a spares capacity be established based on arisk analysis incorporating mean time between failure (MTBF),
performance impacts of failures, fabrication/procurement lead times,
costs, etc. Such a strategy should be used as a basis for establishing thecontinuing development and spares component of the operations
budget.
WHOLE ACCELERATOR SYSTEM -MANAGEMENT
Recommendation: Management needs now to give strong attention
to planning facility improvements in both near and intermediate terms.
In the near term "task forces" reporting to the Director are needed forthe identified remedial tasks.
Recommendation: Management needs a more coherent approach toplanning for facility improvements in both near and intermediate

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terms. Establishment of a roadmap for the next ~5 years would
facilitate this activity. Such a roadmap should be developed inconsultation with all stakeholders and should then provide theframework for a more detailed commissioning and operations plan.
Recommendation (repeat): The integrated commissioning/operations
plan should be extended through the first few years of operations andshould be discussed with, and made available to, the user community.
The published plan should include estimates of performance,
anticipated reliabilities, and the time allocation between users andaccelerator physics. The integrated plan should also identify resources
required to support the plan.
Recommendation: The commissioning team should move towardcommissioning with high intensity (100 kW equivalent) single beamtransfers from the RCS to the MR as soon as possible.
LINAC ENERGY UPGRADE
Recommendation: Give investigation of the RFQ problem the highest
priority.
Recommendation: Consider improving isolation of the RFQ from theion source vacuum by increasing the length of LEBT vacuum
manifold. Additional beam scraping could also be effective, if designed
to assure that ions outside the acceptance of RFQ are not injected into
RFQ.
Recommendation: A careful examination identifying the likely causesof the RFQ breakdown should be undertaken before a spare RFQ isbuilt.
Recommendation: The committee recommends that the linac energy
upgrade be implemented in a single step.
Recommendation: The LINAC energy upgrade should be
implemented only after the RCS injection has been upgraded to 400
MeV and the front-end is capable of producing a pulse intensity that
supports an increase in RCS output power relative to that achievablewith 181 MeV injection energy.

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SCIENTIFIC PROGRAMS
Recommendation: J-PARC and KEK needs to develop a clear longterm strategy to maximize the scientific impact of T2K in the face ofstrong international competition and of a rare kaon decay program.
The strategy should include identification of appropriate resources torealize timely delivery of several hundred kilowatt beam power.
Recommendation: The parent organizations of KEK and JAEA needto capitalize on the investments made so far in the MUSE facility, on
the superb technical skill available in the current team and on thevarious funding opportunities available to the users by investing in astrong scientific leadership who could bring these realizations into
fruition. The IAC reaffirms that the development of the Ultra slow
muon beamline is of the highest priority.
USER MANAGEMENT
Recommendation: That the continuing, integrated operations planshould be discussed with, and made available to, the user community.
The published plan should include estimates of performance,
anticipated reliabilities, and the time allocation between users andaccelerator physics.
Recommendation: The IAC notes with satisfaction the formation of
the J-PARC User Advisory Committee reporting to the J-PARC
Director, and its broad composition. It is recommended that a reportfrom the Committee be available to the IAC at its annual meetings.
NUCLEAR TRANSMUTATION
Recommendation: The IAC reiterates its recommendation that JPARC should develop a long-term strategy in transmutation
experiments and ADS research, with a significant increase inexperimental efforts as well as in the TEF facility design studies.
Recommendation: The IAC recommends that experimental results
should be presented to the IAC meeting next year.
Recommendation: J-PARC should continue to contribute toeducation and training in Japan to build a new generation ofscientists and engineers.

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GENERAL STATUS OF THE PROJECTThe IAC meeting reported here was a historic one for J-PARC. The
vision of the Japanese Government in 2001 to create a world center of
excellence through JAEA and KEK has been realized in the construction
phase. Moreover, the combined staff from the two parent agencies, withJapanese industry, has shown high skill and innovation in design andconstruction of the accelerator systems, beam lines, experimental
facilities and instruments. This group of people is a new asset for Japanand the parent organizations. Most money has been spent on theaccelerator systems - with a long-term view to provide the strongest
proton beams in the world for neutrino and nuclear physics, materials
and life sciences research as well as radioactive waste transmutation.
A wider world vision, first enunciated in about 1995 by the OECD
Megascience Forum is also being realized - the establishment of three"state of the art" neutron sources around the globe - in response to thegreat growth in the need for intense neutron beams for materials and life
sciences. The European and American Neutron Scattering Association
have functioned for more that a decade. Now the newly formed AsiaOceania Neutron Scattering Association is located in J-PARC.
As the scale of J-PARC operation grows a new scientific and politicalasset is forming through the extensive group of users. The outcome forscience from systematic merging of national and international science,for example, in the thousands who will come for brief experiments in thematerials and life sciences, must be strongly supported by sociablemeeting and resting places, seminars and amenities at the site. The
marginal cost of this is negligible in terms of the Center operating budget
but this outcome is well recognized in major user facilities world-wide.
The strong support of KEK and JAEA for the growing J-PARC program
through budget and advocacy is essential - even as they form the new
visions for their programs that were presented to the IAC at this meeting.
The importance of a strong operations budget now cannot be
overestimated. The "partners'" provision of continuing scientific andmanagement expertise, of access to their facilities and staff will be very
important as J-PARC grows.
Recommendation: That as J-PARC enters full commissioning and theinitial experimental phase, KEK and JAEA give their strongest support

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in submissions to the Japanese Government for a strong J-PARC
operational budget - noting that in 2007 the IAC recommended an"operational budget - so that systematic improvement of theaccelerator system and instruments can be done within theenvelope of about 190 Oku Yen per annum (estimated last year) at
full operation after 2008."
In summary, the IAC congratulates the entire J-PARC team for their
heroic efforts, and JAEA and KEK for their wise investments, inbringing the J-PARC construction project toward a timely and successful
completion. Many challenges have been overcome but the transition to
full operation brings more challenges for a facility aiming for strong
international scientific impact.
The IAC has consistently advocated a model for J-PARC where thepartners remain fully engaged at the operational and scientific level as
the Center grows. The IAC believes that it is critical in this all-important
commissioning phase, and consistent with international best practices,that both partner institutions retain fully engaged ownership stakes inbringing J-PARC performance and instrumentation to fulfill its promise.
The opposite model as the operational phase is entered, where theownership is diminished and the Center role reduced to that of a beamprovider is threatening to the future excellence of the center and its
scientific impact.
The IAC attaches great importance to maintaining top level participationof the J-PARC Director in the management decisions of KEK and JAEA
affecting J-PARC after April 1, 2009. The IAC strongly advocates
inclusion of J-PARC directors in the parent advice structures and acontinuing help in the recruitment of the next generation of leaders in the
J-PARC Center.
Recommendation: The IAC recommends that J-PARC, JAEA and
KEK management be fully engaged in a joint effort to develop thefacility commissioning and exploitation strategy to maximize thescientific return from the investments made in the J-PARC project.
The strategy should establish short-term and long-term priorities forthe many remaining technical tasks as well as the resources needed fora timeline that keeps the highest priority experiments internationallycompetitive.

- 11 -ACCELERATOR SYSTEM STATUS
The IAC is indebted to the A-TAC and its Chairman Dr Stephen Holmes
for providing it with the draft A-TAC report prior to the meeting. Thisdetailed examination of the present status of the accelerator systems.
Some of the key draft recommendations available to the IAC have beenbrought forward into the main recommendations of the Executive
Summary. Much time was spent at the IAC formally discussing thetechnical analysis of accelerator performance and the plans of J-PARC
and suggestions of the A-TAC for the next steps in reaching high power
in a careful but expeditious way.
The IAC would like to acknowledge the very impressive progressevident in the completion of construction and initial beamcommissioning of the accelerator complex since the last meeting. The
list of accomplishments is spectacular, including: first neutrons andmuons produced in the MLF, the high power demonstration of RCS
operation, 30 GeV acceleration and extraction from the MR, anddelivery of beam to the Hadron hall. Just one of these accomplishments
in a single year would be significant. The fact that so many successes
have been achieved in the past year is evidence of the tremendous hard
work and dedication of the J-PARC staff, and is highly commended by
the IAC.
Basic Functionality of the Accelerator Complex
It must be emphasized that at this point the basic functionality of theaccelerator complex is proven. This is a very significant fact that was byno means guaranteed, and therefore is worthy of emphasis. The J-PARC
is one of the most technically sophisticated and complicated scientificfacilities in existence. The demonstrated functionality of the accelerator
infrastructure is a major, significant accomplishment in which the JPARC staff should take great pride.
As in all accelerator projects of this complexity, initial operation has
revealed some weaknesses in “day-one” systems and components. It
should be kept in mind that this is a natural stage of any such project
which aims to extend the present state-of-the-art in technology.
Therefore, these difficulties should not be viewed as setbacks, but should
be considered as among the inevitable “growing pains” of such a facility.

- 12 -To analyse the way ahead with accelerator developments and theirconsequences, the IAC formulates a response in terms of five questions
and answers:
1.
Are the main performance limitations and risks to the nearterm program identified and adequately understood andprioritized?
The three primary performance limitations were identified as i)
breakdown in the RFQ, ii) damage to some of the magnetic alloy coresin the RF systems, iii) excessive current ripple in the main ring dipole
power supply.
Breakdown in the RFQ
The difficulties related to arcing in the RFQ are the most serious
performance limitation, with the highest risk to the near-term program.
The most likely cause (as identified by A-TAC) seems to be related tohigher than desired residual gas pressure in the RFQ due to inadequate
pumping of hydrogen gas (H2) introduced in the negative hydrogen ion
source. The details of the role of H2 and quantification of its influence
are not yet well understood. Plans are underway to prepare a spare RFQ.
The ATAC committee recommends building a spare RFQ, but only after
the underlying cause of the breakdown is understood, in order to ensurethat the new RFQ doesn’t suffer the same fate as the original one. The
following recommendations from the A-TAC report are specificallyendorsed:
Recommendation: Give investigation of the RFQ problem the highest
priority.
Recommendation: Consider improving isolation of the RFQ from theion source vacuum by increasing the length of LEBT vacuum
manifold. Additional beam scraping could also be effective, if designed
to assure that ions outside the acceptance of RFQ are not injected into
RFQ.
Recommendation: A careful examination identifying the likely causesof the RFQ breakdown should be undertaken before a spare RFQ isbuilt.

- 13 -The IAC notes, with pleasure, that funding for the upgrade in the linac
injection energy to the RCS has been agreed and that plans are now
advanced for the implementation of this in 2010-2011. The necessary
developments associated with the RFQ and this upgrade are linked. The
relationship was considered by the A-TAC and, subject to the studies
mentioned above, the IAC has brought forward into this document theadvantageous recommendations for this linkage to be considered by JPARC management within the financial and personnel resources
framework.
The timing of the LINAC upgrade is brought to the J_PARC
management's notice. The advice is to delay that until the front end is
producing sufficient current x pulse length to support an increase inpower out of the RCS. Our reasoning was that simply raising theinjection energy without raising the charge delivered to the RCS could
actually make things worse. For example, total activation in the injection
area could go up as the energy goes up. Whether the criteria for
implementation should be pegged to 50 mA or 40 mA is a gray area.
Recommendation: The LINAC energy upgrade should be
implemented only after the RCS injection has been upgraded to 400
MeV and the front-end is capable of producing a pulse intensity that
supports an increase in RCS output power relative to that achievablewith 181 MeV injection energy.
The IAC endorsed the recommendation of the A-TAC that thestaging of the installation of the ACS Linac in phases is not the mosteffective utilization of times and resources.
Recommendation: The committee recommends that the linac energy
upgrade be implemented in a single step.
Damage to some of the Magnetic Alloy Cores in the RF Systems
Recent observed damage to the magnetic alloy cores used in the ring RF
systems is another performance limitation revealed in initial operations.
Use of this core material is one of the new developments implemented in
the J-PARC complex. Much work has been performed over the last
several years in order to improve the performance of the cores andcavities. The committee notes that the team has already demonstrated an
improvement in core lifetime of more than an order of magnitude in thelast 4 years.

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Recommendation: Manage this issue – while improvements aredeveloped -- through preparation of a sufficient inventory of sparecores and cavities, as well as the preparation of a 12th RCS RF cavity.
In addition, further improvement in the core performance is required.
The committee urges a dedicated program making use of the test-standcapability for further improving performance.
Operational budget limitations continue to limit the ability to acquire
much needed spares. A detailed spares strategy is required in order toboth set priorities for acquisition of spares, and to use in formulating asustainable operations budget.
Recommendation: That a spares capacity be established based on arisk analysis incorporating mean time between failure (MTBF),
performance impacts of failures, fabrication/procurement lead times,
costs, etc. Such a strategy should be used as a basis for establishing thecontinuing development and spares component of the operations
budget.
Current Ripple in the Main Ring Dipole Power Supply
In operation of the main ring excessive current ripple on the dipole
power supply was noted during initial startup. This was at the level of-3-2

3×10 at 3 GeV and at 1×10 during acceleration. The ripple is in acommon mode component with the neutral potential point floating with avariation of ±400 V during acceleration. Modifications have been
-3

implemented in the power supply and have reduced ripple to 1×10 at 3
-4

GeV and acceleration, 2×10 at flattop (slow spill). There is a new filter-6

under design to achieve full performance (few ×10 at flattop). The IAC
concurs with the A-TAC committee view that the current level of power
supply ripple is not an impediment to operations with fast extraction.
Although the present 90% slow extraction is acceptable as starting point
the limiting of cycle time to six seconds is a problem which could be
remedied by a dedicated low voltage supply.
2.
Are mitigation plans in place and appropriate for addressing
performance limitations observed in initial operations?

- 15 -The underlying cause of the RFQ breakdown remains to be explained indetail and remains to be proven experimentally. Whilst operations at
20KW have been of considerable benefit for testing the accelerator
system, understanding instrument performance and even allowing someusers to perform novel scientific experiments, the highest priority mustbe given to understanding RFQ performance now that possible causes
have appeared from J-PARC analysis and the discussions of A-TAC.
The plans for addressing other limitations are appropriate.
3.
Is the impact on operations understood and has it beenclearly communicated with the user community?
It is essential to establish and communicate a realistic beam power
trajectory which takes into account the envisaged hardware
modifications. The IAC has previously recommended that a formal
Operations Plan be established and used as a mechanism for capturing
hardware upgrade plans, notional operating schedules and anticipatedbudget needs. It is also a necessary process for communicating projected
performance to the user community. The IAC considers the formulationand communication of such a plan as an urgent matter.
Recommendation: Management needs now to give strong attention
to planning facility improvements in both near and intermediate terms.
In the near term "task forces" reporting to the Director are needed forthe identified remedial tasks.
4.
Is an organizational structure in place that can effectively
coordinate the transition to operations while simultaneously
resolving performance issues?
The overarching goal at this time is rightly focused on obtaining firstscientific results from the facility. As a result there is intense focus on
the very near-term difficulties that are being faced, including the RFQ
mitigation, further development of magnetic alloy core issues, resolutionof the ring dipole power supply performance issues and increasing ion
source performance.
In addition, the linac energy recovery project is now funded, anddemands a substantial effort to complete within the timeline establishedby the funding agency.

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The committee is concerned that the present organizational
responsibilities and structure leaves open the possibility of a conflict
between day-to-day operational needs (and distractions) and those needs
which have a longer timeline. As a good example, we note that the linac
energy recovery team is composed of members who are busy operating
and improving the accelerator performance right now. Likewise, the ion
source development requires a dedicated effort free from distractions of
day-to-day operations.
The committee heard that the transfer of operational responsibilities from
KEK to the J-PARC center is not clear. The IAC would like to reemphasize the importance of establishing full responsibility for theoperation and experimental program within the J-PARC Center.
An organization exists on paper and there is an assigned commissioning
coordinator. However, it is unclear what authorities the coordinator has.
The organization would benefit greatly from a documented plan that
integrates commissioning, repairs to under-performing components, andoperations activities over the next several years. Such a plan should beaccompanied by a roadmap that establishes the evolution of the complex
over the next five or so years, and provides the framework for a moredetailed operational plan. It is important that the roadmap be developedby the J-PARC management with all stakeholders, including the users,
the sponsoring laboratories (KEK and JAEA). The sponsoring
institutions need to assume joint responsibility for the successful
execution of the plan, including committing the required resources.
Recommendation: Management needs a more coherent approach toplanning for facility improvements in both near and intermediate
terms. Establishment of a roadmap for the next ~5 years would
facilitate this activity. Such a roadmap should be developed inconsultation with all stakeholders and should then provide theframework for a more detailed commissioning and operations plan.
Recommendation: The integrated commissioning/operations planshould be extended through the first few years of operations andshould be discussed with, and made available to, the user community.
The published plan should include estimates of performance,
anticipated reliabilities, and the time allocation between users andaccelerator physics. The integrated plan should also identify resources
required to support the plan.

- 17 -

5.
Are adequate plans in place to take the present postcommissioning performance to the ultimate operating capability?
J-PARC has plans for call into service an “Accelerator Review
Committee” populated with local experts, enhanced by a few outside
experts, to guide the planning and prioritization for the next several year.
The agreed implementation of Linac energy recovery is welcomed andmust be included. The formulation of an Operations plan or “roadmap”
for the next ~5 years has not yet been developed and, as the next steprequires management priority to ensure its completion. We therefore
think it is timely for full implementation of our recommendation fromthe 2008 IAC report:
Recommendation: The IAC recommends developing and broadly
communicating a formal Operations Plan and notional funding
profiles required to achieve the Phase 1 goals (0.6 MW from RCS, 0.4
MW from MR). Such a plan should capture the necessary hardware
improvements and their anticipated deployment schedules, thenecessary spares for high-reliability operation, the anticipated beampower trajectory, estimates of performance, and the anticipatedoperating hours available to each end user program, and time
allocation for accelerator physics studies.
The IAC recommends that the various J-PARC technical advisorycommittees assess these plans prior to the next IAC meeting.

- 18 -PARTICLE AND NUCLEAR PHYSICSHADRON EXPERIMENTS
The IAC congratulates the Hadron Hall and T2K teams for theirimpressive installation progress during the past year, keeping bothprograms on track for a timely launch of data-taking.
In particular, the Hadron Hall was made ready to accept first slowextraction beam on January 27, 2009 and the T1 secondary beam
production target was installed, permitting a start on commissioning of
the first secondary beam line (K1.8BR), on February 10, 2009. Both ofthese events are major milestones for the facility. Two other beam lines(K1.8 and KL) should be ready for commissioning by Fall 2009, with
K1.1BR and a Test Line scheduled for completion around the start of
JFY2010. A partial installation of the detection equipment for theK1.8BR line will allow data-taking to begin soon on experiment E17,
studying kaonic atom X-rays from the K-3He atom. The SKS
spectrometer for the K1.8 line has been moved from KEK and should beready for installation, with its complete detector package, by Fall 2009.
This setup will facilitate a program of high-resolution hypernuclear
spectroscopy, with the first experiments scheduled to investigate (,K)reactions on light nuclear targets. A very sensible short-term plan waspresented for commissioning the K1.8BR and K1.8 beam lines, and forlaunching early experiments that can produce significant physics results
at the beam power performance levels anticipated for the next year.
In the longer term, the experiment planned for the Hadron Hall that is
likely to have the greatest international visibility is the E14 search for the
direct CP-violating decay K L0   0 . The KL beamline needed for thisexperiment should be ready for beam survey in Fall 2009, but a clear
timeline for mounting the experiment was not presented. The cesium
iodide crystals needed for the detector are to be moved from Fermilab.
The first phase of the experiment aims to reach sensitivity levels that willallow a first observation of the decay if its branching ratio occurs at theStandard Model prediction, and therefore provides significant discovery
potential for physics beyond the Standard Model. Reaching thissensitivity requires three years of exposure at a beam power of 300 kW.
The IAC believes that establishing a clear timeline for completing thisfirst phase of E14 should be an important part of a developing strategy to
optimize the J-PARC scientific impact.

- 19 -NEUTRINO EXPERIMENTS
The centerpiece of the particle and nuclear physics program at J-PARC
is the T2K experiment that will direct a muon neutrino beam toward theSuper-Kamiokande detector. The past year also saw impressive progress
toward the launch of this experiment. Fast extraction of beam from theMain Ring was successfully demonstrated in December 2008, and firstbeam commissioning with the production target and first neutrino horn isanticipated for Spring 2009. The second and third horns are scheduled
now for installation during the Summer 2009 shutdown. Near detector
construction is proceeding at a high level of activity toward completionin time for full beam and detector commissioning near the end of 2009.
Data acquisition system and readout electronics upgrades of the SuperKamiokande detector have been completed, so that SuperK is now readyfor beam from J-PARC.
There is strong international competition for T2K in other reactor- andaccelerator-based neutrino oscillation experiments with a similar goal of
improving sensitivity to the unknown mixing angle sin 2 (213 ) to a level of0.01 or beyond. In order for T2K to remain competitive, J-PARC will
have to upgrade delivered beam power rapidly. The IAC was presented
with a viable, though aggressive, short-term T2K strategy in which a2010 run of duration 1  107 seconds at beam power of 100 kW could
produce a first physics result by the end of 2010 that is comparable to theanticipated goal on that timeline for the Double Chooz reactor
experiment. However, the longer-term strategy is not entirely clear. The
ultimate T2K goal sensitivity below 0.01 requires 750 kW beam
exposure for 5 years, and could thus deliver a result substantially later
than the similar sensitivity measurement anticipated for the Daya Bay
reactor experiment by 2013. The NOA experiment utilizing a beamfrom Fermilab is now back on track in the U.S., and its timeline mustalso be taken into account. The IAC urges that a clear strategy for
maximizing the impact of T2K be a critical component of an overall JPARC strategic plan.
Recommendation: J-PARC and KEK need to develop a clear longterm strategy to maximize the scientific impact of T2K in the face ofstrong international competition and of a rare kaon decay program.
The strategy should include identification of appropriate resources torealize timely delivery of several hundred kilowatt beam power.

- 20 -

MATERIALS AND LIFE SCIENCES
NEUTRON SCATTERINGThe International Advisory Committee congratulates J-PARC on the
successful completion of the construction phase of the Materials and Life
Science Facility and welcomes its transition to face the next set ofchallenges - commissioning and then full exploitation.
Neutrons were first produced and recorded in the MLF on the 30th of
May 2008. In June 2008, one of the first instruments, the Super High
Resolution Powder Diffractometer (SHRPD) recorded the world’s
highest resolution neutron diffraction pattern.
All early results have confirmed the efficacy of the advanced designconcepts of the neutron production target, coupled and high resolution
moderator systems and innovative neutron scattering instrumentation.
This, together with the demonstration of the potential to deliver 300 kW
beam for a short period, bodes extremely well for the realisation in Japanof a world leading facility for the Materials and Life Sciences.
The transition from early commissioning to full user operation withbeam allocation via an external PAC may, however, be premature.
Intermittent beam at 30 kW is fully adequate for the early phases of
instrument commissioning, allowing the calibration of detectors,
debugging and testing of software and the start of the long process offinding and reducing sources of background and optimising instrument
performance. There is clearly pressure to move from the successes ofthis early commissioning phase into an operational phase with undue
haste: this must be resisted and the expectations both of the user
community and the facility sponsors managed. Exposing a new and
expectant community to unreliable and under-resourced operations is not
to be advised.
The building blocks for success are all potentially in place, but delivery
of a robust user operation for demanding and unforgiving users –especially those unfamiliar with central facilities ( eg industry ) will taketime. The IAC accepts the arguments made by N-TAC on instrument
staffing. Current staffing levels, typically 3.5 FTEs per instrument, areperhaps adequate for commissioning at 20 kW, but fall woefully short ofthe internationally recognised standard of the 6-8 FTEs of technical and- 21 -

scientific support required to realise a world ranking user programme at
100 kW+ operations.
Recommendation: In parallel with delivery of increasing beam powerfrom the accelerator, a strategy to build up scientific and technicalsupport for the MLF program to international levels should beestablished.
The IAC agrees with the N-TAC analysis that needs for support
laboratories near the instruments must be arranged and prioritized.
“As the type of equipment one requires depends critically on the types ofusers one seeks to serve, this will require that the MLF at least estimate
the balance of scientific usage on each instrument. Desired service
levels and space requirements can be developed by benchmarking
against other leading neutron facilities.
Some soft matter users may run 20 or more samples per hour on a SANS
instrument, and at a lesser but still significant rate on the reflectometers.
As these samples are usually prepared at the facility, well-equipped user
support laboratories very near the neutron instruments are essential forusers in the areas of soft matter and biology. This space should be
separate and in addition to the existing facilities for powders and otherhard matter. Unfortunately, the current laboratory space in the MLF iswholly inadequate and the Ibaraki Quantum Beam Research Center is
too far from the experimental halls to serve this function.
NTAC recommends that the MLF develop a prioritized plan forsupport laboratories at the MLF and/or accessible to users of the MLF
by the next NTAC meeting. In addition, a plan should be developed forthe equipping and staffing of these support laboratories.”
The IAC was delighted to see that our earlier recommendation to deliver
10 neutron scattering instruments has been achieved and indeed
exceeded. Welcome investment from Ibaraki prefecture and the transferof the highest quality instruments from KENS means that a total of 15 of
the 23 beamlines will be instrumented at some level in the early days.
Partial detector coverage is adequate for initial operation, and plans arein place to raise the capability of all of these 15 instruments to world
standard in the not too distant future. The IAC recommends that JPARC focuses its resources in bringing the initial instrument suite to full- 22 -

world standard before embarking on the development of the unassigned
beamlines. These slots are precious, and a strategic rather than pragmatic
allocation would be wise in the future.
Recommendation: The IAC recommends that the unassigned neutron
beamlines are not allocated at this stage so that future choices,
informed by experience gained with this initial instrument suite, can be
made.
MLF MUON FACILITY
The successful completion and initial operation of the muon production
facility represents a defining event in the life of the MLF at J-PARC.
Through sheer hard work and dedication, a muon beam was produced ontime and the first five experiments received beamtime. Even insomewhat trying conditions, interesting and publishable results wereobtained in the first user cycle. This is a tremendous achievement andthe IAC congratulates the entire team for this success.
As predicted previously, the user community has realized the unique
opportunity presented by the development of the world most intense
pulse ultra slow muon beams at J-PARC. Large collaborations are now
forming to exploit this unique opportunity and seek funding to mount aworld class experimental program. A visionary scientific leadership has
to be put in place to nurture the large international interest in Ultra slow
muon beams at J-PARC and orchestrate the activities of the muon
facility complex. Interest in such beams are coming from different
communities like material sciences, particle physics and industrial
applications. Although this represents a departure from the initial vision,
it should be taken as a positive endorsement of what is being build . This
represents a challenge to adapt the MUSE complex to this new reality.
The IAC reaffirms its strong support for building the planned Ultra Slow
Muon line as soon as possible to initiate the science program at theearliest opportunity.
Strong leadership will be needed to select the optimal roadmap for the
MUSE program at J-PARC . By exploiting the specialized expertise
which are getting engaged from key players in academia , research
institutes and industry, J-PARC will be in a position to develop theworld most powerful source of ultra slow muons. This will benefit the- 23 -

main customers which are still going to be the large community ofmaterial scientists who will want access to micro probes to study
surfaces, thin films and nanostructure. The new organization of the JPARC MUSE group should reflect this new reality and include review
mechanisms for selecting projects on scientific merit within a defined
vision, for blessing facility developments prior to developing externalfunding applications and for approving muon beamtime.
Recommendation: The parent organizations of KEK and JAEA needto capitalize on the investments made so far in the MUSE facility, on
the superb technical skill available in the current team and on thevarious funding opportunities available to the users by investing in astrong scientific leadership who could bring these realizations into
fruition. The IAC reaffirms that the development of the Ultra slow
muon beamline is of the highest priority.
USER INTERFACE, SAFETY and COMPUTING
User Interface
The creation of a User Office has been an important step. It will define
the culture of many aspects of life for the J-PARC user community andhas the potential to develop harmony with the wider user community at
Tokai, including, for example, users of JRR3-M. The IAC is pleased tosee substantial progress in developing a pro-active user interface at JPARC, addressing issues such as:
•
•
•
•
•
•

Communicating opportunities afforded by J-PARC to a wideranging scientific field
Developing the appropriate peer review processes to ensure ahigh quality and balanced programme
Scheduling and organising support before during and after
experiments
Creating the appropriate safety culture for J-PARC Users
Delivering feedback from to users to the facility, enhancing
future capabilities
Publicising success and broadening the appeal of J-PARC in newcommunities

The IAC agrees with the N-TAC discussion on the importance ofsociable rest facilities convenient to the instruments in the MLF facility.

- 24 -

"J-PARC will be a focus for some of the world’s best scientists.
Informal meetings and discussions are an important contributor to thescientific atmosphere in any research organization. These meetings
often lead to new collaborations and result in significant advances in our
understanding of materials and the development of new technologies forneutron science. These interactions are so important and exciting thatcertain areas at existing facilities are legendary as a highlight of theuser’s scientific experience. The committee did not see any location
where these important interactions would naturally occur at the MLF. It
seems to us that the Ibaraki Quantum Beam Research Center is too far
from the MLF for informal scientific discussions to occur naturally.
Moreover the Ibaraki Quantum Beam Research Center is on the otherside of a very busy road which is difficult to cross safely. On a relatednote, J-PARC is located in the country-side. Thus the development ofappropriate accommodations and restaurants are very important to attract
users to the MLF."
The IAC supports the idea of developing a “TOKAI campus” which
would provide an active intellectual forum for researchers, post-doctoral
fellows and students across the J-PARC enterprise and even for thecommunity at large.
SafetyAs the community of users grows at J-PARC, the opportunity must be
taken to create the strongest safety culture with respect to operations andradioprotection. A highly safe-conscious user group is a foundation forsuccess and an asset to the institution. The induction processes, therefresher courses and the public awareness of the care for safety in thewhole organization are important. The IAC is aware that attention is
being paid to these matters and commends this. As J-PARC moves tooperations in an international context, an explicit rather than implicit
approach to safety needs to be established.
Recommendation: Report explicitly on safety and risk evaluation
procedures at future IACs.
Informatics and Computing
The IAC notes the progress made by the information section since its
establishment in April 2008. The thought given to providing ease of
external user access, to instrumental operation and gathered data both at

- 25 -

the center and remotely, is an important step forward and the cooperationof the J-PARC partners in achieving this and future developments shown
to the Committee is commended.
User-friendly data information and data base systems will be an
important feature of J-PARC success. The high volumes of data from
the MLF facility will increase as greater detector areas are used and thepower of the accelerator grows. Similarly, the hadron and neutrino
programs will place large demands on data processing and data storing
capabilities at J-PARC. In concert with the users, the computing groupshould anticipate how these critical resources will be allocated andmanaged. Transformation of the data sets during experiments at J-PARC
and remotely by the national and international user communities will beessential to the productivity of the facility. The cooperation of instrument
scientists and the information section of J-PARC will be essential inachieving this.
USER ADVISORY COMMITTEEThe IAC thanks Professor T. Yamanaka and the User Advisory
Committee for their detailed work and helpful advice to J-PARC. Every
Director needs the advice on a regular basis from the user community
and the channel provided in the J-PARC User Advisory Committee is agood one. The scope of this user advice was wide ranging and was animportant insight for the IAC into the long-term thinking of the broad
scientific group represented in the Committee. The IAC would
appreciate an annual report from the User Community focusing on thelarger issues for J-PARC that they see as the operational phase develops
in the various sectors.
Recommendation: The IAC notes with satisfaction the formation of
the J-PARC User Advisory Committee reporting to the J-PARC
Director, and its broad composition. It is recommended that a reportfrom the Committee be available to the IAC at its annual meetings.

- 26 -NUCLEAR TRANSMUTATIONThe IAC was pleased to learn that the AEC committee chaired byProfessor Yamana AEC will include a review of partitioning andtransmutation (P&T) technology. The publication of this report at theend of March will address some of the important concerns about thecontribution of P&T to nuclear waste management using the future
generation of nuclear reactors. The intermediate report indicates thatcurrent research in Japan will be carefully evaluated and that thedirections of R&D concerning different concepts, future
infrastructures requirements and international cooperation will beranked by priorities. The final report from this committee composedof high-level representatives of academic, public organizations andindustry, will be essential to support J-PARC transmutation R&D.
The IAC appreciates the efforts of the J-PARC team to build a strong
R&D community bridging academic and industry technology
research. The IAC recommends that the J-PARC team contributes tothe experimental work at Kyoto University for the FFAG-KUCA
coupling experiment that is about to start. It will have a significant
impact on the development of fruitful collaborations between JPARC and academic R&D in Japan. Confidence of the public needs
coherent information from universities, public organisations andindustry research. This is one of the essential keys for continuing touse nuclear power in Japan in the long term. The difficulties observedin recovering from the sodium leak that occurred in the Monju
reactor ten years ago are emblematic of the public need for reliable
information.
Recommendation: The IAC reiterates its recommendation that JPARC should develop a long term strategy in transmutation
experiments and ADS research, with a significant increase inexperimental efforts as well as in the TEF facility design studies.
The considerable knowledge of Japan in accelerator development,
design and safety studies in ADS, fuel studies, materials science, andnuclear data is fundamental to expand the frontier of knowledge insafe and reliable nuclear waste management.
It is worth noting the considerable evolution of nuclear power
perception around the world. In particular Italy, Sweden and othercountries across Europe are embracing nuclear energy after years of

- 27 -

opposition. A startling change on the issue has also come fromleading environmentalists. These changes have encouraged thecreation of a European Sustainable Nuclear Energy Technology
Platform. The first general assembly has taken place in October 2008.
P&T research is recognized as a lead to systems that would
effectively reduce the volume and long-term toxicity of radioactive
waste emanating either from the reprocessing of spent nuclear fuel orthe spent fuel itself. Research will also explore the potential for new
reactor concepts and/or fuel cycles to produce less waste during
operation of nuclear power plants. Work in this area will lay thegroundwork for future sustainable nuclear fuel cycle strategies
involving transmutation in a dedicated waste-burning Accelerator
Driven System (i.e. sub-critical reactor).
The IAC acknowledges that the J-PARC team has developed
important collaborations with the EU R&D programs EUROTRANS
and MEGAPIE. J-PARC has also participated in several meetings
held by OECD/NEA, IAEA, and Asian countries. These meetings
have been the opportunity to establish fruitful contacts to encourage
the participation of foreign countries to J-PARC experimental
program on P&T.
Recommendation: The IAC recommends that experimental results
should be presented to the IAC meeting next year.
Education and training in JAEA’s facilities in Tokai, advanced
reactors and J-PARC offers unique opportunities to strengthen aunique combination of research and engineering.
Recommendation: J-PARC should continue to contribute toeducation and training in Japan to build a new generation ofscientists and engineers.

- 28 -

APPENDIX IAgenda for the 8th International Advisory Committee Meeting
J-PARC

Date:
Place:March 9(Mon) and March 10 (Tue), 2009
J-PARC Center – Tokai

March 9 (Mon)8:50 - 9:10 Executive Session (Closed)
Committee + Nagamiya, Oyama, Yamazaki
9:10 - 9:30 KEK and J-PARC
9:30 - 9:50 Overview of the Japan Atomic Energy Agency

Y. Kamiya
H. Yokomizo

9:50 – 10:10 -- Coffee Break –10:10 – 11:10 Status of J-PARC
S. Nagamiya/Y. Oyama
11:10 – 12:40 Accelerators- J-PARC Accelerator Progress Report
A. Ando- A-TAC Report
S. Holmes
12:40 – 14:00 -- Lunch –14:00 – 15:30(14:00-14:20)(14:20-14:45)(14:45-15:30)

Nuclear and Particle Physics Experimental Facility- Hadron Facility of J-PARC
K. H. Tanaka- Experiments at Hadron Hall in JFY2009
T. Takahash i
T. Kobayashi- Status of Neutrino Experiment T2K

15:30 – 15:50 -- Coffee Break –15:50 – 17:30 Material and Life Science Experimental Facility(15:50-16:35) Status of MLF and Topical Progress Report of Neutron Y. Ikeda(16:35 -16:50) - N-TAC Report
D. Neumann(16:50 -17:15) -One Year Progress of J-PARC Muon Facility MUSE Y. Miyake(17:15-17:30) - MUSAC Report
J.-M. Poutissou
17:30 – 18:00 Closed Session
18:30 -

Reception (Akogi-ga-ura Club)

March 10 (Tue)8:50 - 9:10
Executive Session (Closed)
9:10 – 9:40
9:40 – 9:55
9:55 – 10:10

Nuclear Transmutation
Network and Computing in J-PARC
J-PARC USERS OFFICE in FY 2008

H. Oigawa
A. Manabe
M. Ieiri

- 29 -

10:10 – 10:30 -- Coffee Break –10:30 – 11:10

Report from J-PARC Users Committee-- Prospects of Science at J-PARC -（presented by phone from Aichi pref.）11:10 – 12:15 Closed Session & Working
12:15 – 13:10 -- Lunch –13:10 – 15:00 -- Site Tour -15:00 – 15:30 Working Hour
15:30 – 16:00 Summary Session
Adjourn

T. Yamanaka

- 30 -

APPENDIX IICOMMITTEE MEMBERS
CHEN, Jia'er

Professor, Peking University. chenje@pku.edu.cn

FROIS, Bernard

Director at CEA of the "New Energy Technologies"
programs of the French National Research Agency.CEASaclay bernard.frois@cea.fr

FUKUYAMA, Hidetoshi

Professor, Tokyo University of Science,
fukuyama@rs.kagu.tus.ac.jp

HENDERSON, Stuart

Director, Research Accelerator Division, SNS, Oak
Ridge, shenderson@ornl.gov.

HOLMES, Steve

Associate Director, Fermilab, USA. holmes@fnal.gov

PETITJEAN, Claude Science coordinator, Laboratory of Particle Physics, Paul
Scherrer Institute, Switzerland. Claude.petitjean@psi.ch
POUTISSOU, Jean-Michel

Associate Director, TRIUMF, Canada.
jmp@triumf.ca

TANAKA, Satoru,

Professor, University of Tokyo,
s-tanaka@q.t.u-tokyo.ac.jp

TAYLOR, Andrew

Director, RAL and ISIS, UK. adt@isise.rl.ac.uk

VIGDOR, Steve

Deputy Director, Brookhaven National Laboratory
vigdor@bnl.gov

WHITE, John W.
(Chairman)

Professor, Australian National University
Canberra, Australia, jww@rsc.anu.edu.au