Heavy ion beams from the new Hungarian ECR ion source

The first beams of highly charged ions in Hungary were obtained in fall of 1996. The new 14.5 GHz ECR ion source of ATOMKI produced beams of multiply charged ions with remarkable intensities at first experiments. Since then, numerous further developments were carried out. An external electron-donor electrode drastically increased the plasma density and, consequently, the i ntensity of highly charged ions. These upgrades concentrated mainly on beam s from gaseous elements and were carried out by the ECRIS team of ATOMKI. A nother series of experiments - ionising from solids - however, was done in the framework of an international collaboration. The first metal ion beam h as been extracted from the ECRIS in November 1997 using the known method of Metal Ions from Volatile Compounds (MIVOC). The possibility to put the MIV OC chamber inside the ion source was also tested and the dosing regulation problem of metal vapours inside the ion source was solved. As a result, bea ms of more than 10 mu A of highly charged Fe and Ni ions were produced.