Speaker: David Larbalestier, National High Magnetic Field Laboratory
Abstract: Two recent NRC reports have described the scientific and technology rationales for many new types of ultra-high field magnet: msec 150 T pulsed, pulsed 40 T for neutron or x-ray scattering, regional 32 T superconducting (SC), 40 T SC, 28 – 37 T high-resolution NMR, 25 – 40 T SC for x-rays and neutrons, 60 T DC, 20 T for human MRI, as well as magnets for fusion, particle-accelerators, radiotherapy, axion and other particle detectors. The materials and magnet technology have now made sufficient progress that a few of these magnets are now feasible. I will describe this progress and the various pluses and minuses of the three present high-temperature superconductor types and suggest some timelines under which high field coils beyond the capabilities of present-day Nb-Ti and Nb3Sn magnets might start to make it into commercial fabrication. We have shown that High Temperature Cuprate Superconductors can generate fields >40 T, almost twice the Nb-based superconductor limit and in striking distance of the world record 45 T DC field which requires 28 MW of DC power and a large Nb3Sn superconducting outsert magnet.