Sawtooth activity of the ion cloud in an electron-beam ion trap

The dynamics of an ensemble of highly charged Ar and Ba ions in an electron-beam ion trap (EBIT) was studied by recording time-resolved x-ray spectra emitted from trapped ions. Sawtoothlike signatures manifest in the spectra for a variety of EBIT operating conditions indicating a sudden collapse of the ion inventory in the trap. The collapse occurs on a time scale of approximately 100 ms and the evolution of the sawteeth is very sensitive to parameters such as electron-beam current and axial trap depth. Analysis of the measurements is based on a time-dependent calculation of the trapping process showing that sawtooth activity is caused by the feedback between the low-Z argon and high-Z barium ions. This unexpected behavior demonstrates the importance of nonlinear effects in electron-beam traps containing more than a single ion species.