68.4 T pulsed magnet fabricated with a wire-wound metal-matrix Cu/Nb microcomposite

A description is given of a high-strength metal-matrix microcomposite Cu/Nb conductor used in a multilayer wire-wound pulsed field magnet. The 0.5-in inner diameter magnet was precompressed in a hardened-steel structure and cooled to 77 K. A maximum field of 68.4 T was generated for a 5.6-ms half-period at the maximum energy available with the available capacitor bank (100 kJ at 4 kV). The Cu/Nb microcomposite has an ultimate tensile strength (UTS) of 180 ksi at 77 K. The tradeoffs of UTS, temperature, conductor resistance, pulse time, and field volume versus energy are discussed. The manufacturing process of the Cu/Nb metal-matrix microcomposite is outlined. Examples of some recent experiments using this magnet are presented.<
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