Beam-beam deflection as a beam tuning tool at the SLAC linear collider

Abstract To achieve maximum integrated luminosity at the SLAC Linear Collider, a method of noninvasive beam tuning is required. Traditional luminosity monitors based on Bhabha scattering are inadequate because of low instantaneous counting rates. Coherent deflections of one beam by the electromagnetic field of the other are sensitive not only to the relative steering of the two bunches but also to their spot sizes. A brief description of beam-beam deflection theory forms the basis for a discussion of this phenomenon as a tool for single-beam tuning and for luminosity optimization at the interaction point of the SLC.