Abstract

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Ionization Cooling is the only practical solution to preparing  high 

brilliance muon beams for a neutrino factory or muon collider. The muon 

ionization cooling experiment (MICE) is under development at the 

Rutherford Appleton Laboratory (UK) by an international collaboration.

The muon beam line has been commissioned and first measurements of 

emittance with particle physics detectors have been performed. The 

remaining apparatus is currently under construction. First results with 

a liquid-hydrogen absorber will be produced in 2013; a couple of years 

later a full cell of a representative ionization cooling channel, 

including RF re-acceleration, will be in operation. The design offers 

opportunities for tests with various absorbers and several optics 

configurations. Results will be compared with detailed simulations of 

cooling channel performance to ensure full understanding of the cooling 

process.