Nonlinear cooling of an annular beam distribution

In recent years, intense efforts have been devoted to studying how nonlinear effects can be used to shape the transverse beam distribution by means of an adiabatic crossing of nonlinear resonances. By this approach, it is possible to split the beams in the transverse plane so that the initial single-Gaussian beam is divided into several distinct distributions. This is at the heart of the multiturn extraction process that is successfully in operation at the CERN Proton Synchrotron. Nonlinear effects can also be used to cool a beam by acting on its transverse beam distribution. In this paper, we present and discuss the special case of a beam with an annular distribution, showing how its emittance can be effectively reduced by means of properly devised manipulations based on nonlinear effects.