45.5-tesla direct-current magnetic field generated with a high-temperature superconducting magnet.

Strong magnetic fields are required in many fields, such as medicine (magnetic resonance imaging), pharmacy (nuclear magnetic resonance), particle accelerators (such as the Large Hadron Collider) and fusion devices (for example, the International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor, ITER), as well as for other diverse scientific and industrial uses. For almost two decades, 45 tesla has been the highest achievable direct-current (d.c.) magnetic field; however, such a field requires the use of a 31-megawatt, 33.6-tesla resistive magnet inside 11.4-tesla low-temperature superconductor coils1, and such high-power resistive magnets are available in only a few facilities worldwide2. By contrast, superconducting magnets are widespread owing to their low power requirements. Here we report a high-temperature superconductor coil that generates a magnetic field of 14.4 tesla inside a 31.1-tesla resistive background magnet to obtain a d.c. magnetic field of 45.5 tesla-the highest field achieved so far, to our knowledge. The magnet uses a conductor tape coated with REBCO (REBa2Cu3Ox, where RE = Y, Gd) on a 30-micrometre-thick substrate3, making the coil highly compact and capable of operating at the very high winding current density of 1,260 amperes per square millimetre. Operation at such a current density is possible only because the magnet is wound without insulation4, which allows rapid and safe quenching from the superconducting to the normal state5-10. The 45.5-tesla test magnet validates predictions11 for high-field copper oxide superconductor magnets by achieving a field twice as high as those generated by low-temperature superconducting magnets.

Quench Analyses of the MIT 1.3-GHz LTS/HTS NMR Magnet.

The MIT 1.3-GHz LTS/HTS NMR magnet is currently under development. The unique features of this magnet include a 3-nested formation for an 800-MHz REBCO insert (H800) and the no-insulation (NI) winding technique for H800 coils. Because when it is driven to the normal state, an NI REBCO magnet will respond electromagnetically, thermally, and mechanically that may result in permanent magnet damage, analysis of a quenching magnet is a key aspect of HTS magnet protection. We have developed a partial element equivalent circuit method coupled to a thermal and stress finite element method to analyze electromagnetic and mechanical responses of a nested-coil REBCO magnet each a stack of NI pancake coils. Using this method, quench simulations of the MIT 1.3-GHz LTS (L500)/HTS (H800) NMR magnet (1.3G), we have evaluated currents, strains, and torques of H800 Coil 1 to Coil 3 and L500, and center fields of 1.3G, L500, and H800. Our analyses show H800 is vulnerable to mechanical damage.

Assembly and Test of a 3-Nested-Coil 800-MHz REBCO Insert (H800) for the MIT 1.3 GHz LTS/HTS NMR Magnet.

We present assembly and test results of a 3-nested-coil 800-MHz (18.8 T) REBCO insert (H800) for the MIT 1.3 GHz LTS/HTS NMR magnet currently under completion. Each of the three H800 coils is a stack of no-insulation (NI) REBCO double-pancake coils (DPs). The innermost 8.7-T Coil 1 (26 DPs) was completed by mid-2016; the middle 5.6-T Coil 2 (32 DPs) was complet-ed in mid-2017; while the outermost 4.5-T Coil 3 (38 DPs) was completed in early 2018. Coils 1, 2 & 3 were assembled together in early 2018 as a 3-nested-coil, the H800, and tested, first in liquid nitrogen to a power supply current of 20 A, followed by testing in liquid helium to a power supply current of 251.3 A, the H800's design operating current. After roughly five minutes settling time at 251.3 A, the H800 quenched. In this paper we examine probable sources of quench initiation and simulate ensuing quench behavior. Remedial efforts to minimize the tendency towards quenching in the H800 are presented and discussed.

A Field-Shaking System to Reduce the Screening Current-Induced Field in the 800-MHz HTS Insert of the MIT 1.3-GHz LTS/HTS NMR Magnet: A Small-Model Study.

In this paper, we present experimental results, of a small-model study, from which we plan to develop and apply a full-scale field-shaking system to reduce the screening current-induced field (SCF) in the 800-MHz HTS Insert (H800) of the MIT 1.3-GHz LTS/HTS NMR magnet (1.3G) currently under construction-the H800 is composed of 3 nested coils, each a stack of no-insulation (NI) REBCO double-pancakes. In 1.3G, H800 is the chief source of a large error field generated by its own SCF. To study the effectiveness of the field-shaking technique, we used two NI REBCO double-pancakes, one from Coil 2 (HCoil2) and one from Coil 3 (HCoil3) of the 3 H800 coils, and placed them in the bore of a 5-T/300-mm room-temperature bore low-temperature superconducting (LTS) background magnet. The background magnet is used not only to induce the SCF in the double-pancakes but also to reduce it by the field-shaking technique. For each run, we induced the SCF in the double-pancakes at an axial location where the external radial field Br > 0, then for the field-shaking, moved them to another location where the external axial field Bz ≫ BR. Due to the geometry of H800 and L500, top double-pancakes of 3 H800 coils will experience the considerable radial magnetic field perpendicular to the REBCO tape surface. To examine the effect of the field-shaking on the SCF, we tested each NI REBCO DP in the absence or presence of a radial field. In this paper, we report 77-K experimental results and analysis of the effect and a few significant remarks of the field-shaking.

A 1.5-T Magic-Angle Spinning NMR Magnet: 4.2-K Performance and Field Mapping Test Results.

We present results of full-current testing at 4.2 K of a z-axis 0.866-T solenoid and an x-axis 1.225-T dipole coil that comprise a 1.5-T/75-mm room temperature bore magic-angle-spinning nuclear magnetic resonance magnet developed at the MIT Francis Bitter Magnet Laboratory. Also included in the paper are results of the magnet performance when the magnet assembly is immersed, to enhance its thermal mass, in solid nitrogen, and operated in the temperature range of 4.2-4.3 K.

Analyses of Transient Behaviors of No-Insulation REBCO Pancake Coils During Sudden Discharging and Overcurrent.

Stability margin of a high-temperature superconducting (HTS) coil is two or three orders of magnitude greater than that of a low-temperature superconducting coil. In recent years, many papers have reported test results of turn-to-turn no-insulation (NI) HTS coils having extremely enhanced thermal stability, such that burnout never occurs in an NI coil, even at an operating current exceeding 2.5 times the critical current. Thus, The main goal of this paper is to clarify transient electromagnetic and thermal behaviors and mechanism of the high thermal stability in an NI REBCO coil. A partial element equivalent circuit (PEEC) model is proposed for the numerical simulation of an NI REBCO coil, which considers a local electrical contact resistance between turns, an I-V characteristic of an REBCO tape, and local self and mutual inductances of the NI REBCO coil. Using the PEEC model, we investigate the influence of the turn-to-turn contact resistance on the transient behavior of the NI REBCO coil during sudden discharging. We also perform thermal conduction analyses with the PEEC model to clarify the transient behavior of an NI REBCO coil during an overcurrent operation.

Passive Shimming for Magic-Angle-Spinning NMR.

The superconducting dipole magnets wound with HTS wires have been developed for a magic-angle-spinning NMR. The magnetic field of the dipole magnets is tilted from z-axis. Since the highly homogeneous magnetic field is required, the magnetic field of the dipole magnets is necessarily compensated by passive and/or active shimming. However, the compensation of all the components has not been reported. Usually, due to the axial symmetry of a solenoid magnet, only z component of the magnetic field is homogenized. In this paper, all the x, y, and z components of the magnetic field generated by the superconducitng dipole magnet are compensated because of the tilt from the z-axis.