R&D PROPOSAL FOR THE NATIONAL MUON ACCELERATOR PROGRAM

This document contains a description of a multi-year national R&D program aimed at completing a Design Feasibility Study (DFS) for a Muon Collider and, with international participation, a Reference Design Report (RDR) for a muon-based Neutrino Factory. It also includes the supporting component development and experimental efforts that will inform the design studies and permit an initial down-selection of candidate technologies for the ionization cooling and acceleration systems. We intend to carry out this plan with participants from the host national laboratory (Fermilab), those from collaborating U.S. national laboratories (ANL, BNL, Jlab, LBNL, and SNAL), and those from a number of other U.S. laboratories, universities, and SBIR companies. The R&D program that we propose will provide the HEP community with detailed information on future facilities based on intense beams of muons--the Muon Collider and the Neutrino Factory. We believe that these facilities offer the promise of extraordinary physics capabilities. The Muon Collider presents a powerful option to explore the energy frontier and the Neutrino Factory gives the opportunity to perform the most sensitive neutrino oscillation experiments possible, while also opening expanded avenues for the study of new physics in the neutrino sector. The synergy between the two facilities presents the opportunity for an extremely broad physics program and a unique pathway in accelerator facilities. Our work will give clear answers to the questions of expected capabilities and performance of these muon-based facilities, and will provide defensible ranges for their cost. This information, together with the physics insights gained from the next-generation neutrino and LHC experiments, will allow the HEP community to make well-informed decisions regarding the optimal choice of new facilities. We believe that this work is a critical part of any broad strategic program in accelerator R&D and, as the P5 panel has recently indicated, is essential for the long-term health of high-energy physics