• S. Redaelli, M.C. Alabau Pons, M. Giovannozzi, G.J. Müller, F. Schmidt, R. Tomás, J. Wenninger
  CERN, Geneva

The mechanical aperture of the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) is a critical parameter for the operation of the machine due to the high stored beam intensities in the superconducting environment. Betatron and momentum apertures must be therefore precisely measured and optimized. In this paper, we present the results of beam-based measurements of the LHC aperture. The experimental results are compared with the expectations from the as-built model of the LHC aperture, taking into account the optics imperfections of the superconducting magnets. The impact of these measurements on various aspects of the LHC operation are also discussed.

• S. Redaelli, M.C. Alabau Pons, K. Fuchsberger, M. Giovannozzi, M. Lamont, G.J. Müller, F. Schmidt
  CERN, Geneva
• X. Buffat
  EPFL, Lausanne

The control of the high intensity beams of the CERN Large Hadron Collider (LHC) is particular challenging and requires a precise knowledge of the critical beam and machine parameters. In recent years efforts were devoted to the design of a software infrastructure aimed at mimicking the behavior of the LHC. An online model of the machine, based on the accelerator design tool MADX, has been developed to support the commissioning and the operation of the LHC. This model is integrated into the JAVA-based LHC software framework and provides the full computing power of MADX, including the best knowledge of the machine aperture and magnetic models. The MADX implementation is server-based and provides various facilities for optics computation to other application clients. In this paper, we present the status of the MADX online application and illustrate how it has been used during the LHC commissioning. Possible future implementations are also discussed.