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Tungsten blade X-ray Beam Position Monitors (XBPMs) have been used at Diamond Light Source since 2007, however a long-standing problem with these devices has been the growth of leakage current through the ceramic insulation within the XBPMs over time, often becoming greater than 10% of the signal current after a few years of operation. The growth of these leakage currents has been found to be exacerbated by the application of a negative bias (-70V) to the tungsten blades, a bias suggested for optimum position sensitivity. This bias is applied in order to accelerate free electrons away from the surface of the blades and to prevent cross-talk, however, we have found that the operation of the XBPMs without bias has negligible impact on our measurements. Removal of the bias has been found to prevent the growth of leakage currents over time, and can also significantly reduce the cost of our signal acquisition by removing the need for a low-current amplifier with a bias supply.
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