UPGRADE OF THE HIGH CURRENT HEAVY ION FRONT-END SYSTEM OF THE GSI UNILAC

The FAIR Project requires an U beam current above 18 emA behind the heavy ion high current RFQ. The measured intensity was a factor of two lower. The beam dynamics in the front-end system has been simulated with the DYNAMION code. New RFQ electrodes with an improved quality of the surface and a redesigned matching section were fabricated. Beam experiments after the RFQ upgrade confirmed the calculated gain in beam current. PACS: 29.17.+w, 41.75.Lx