DESY, Hamburg, Germany
University of Hamburg, Hamburg, Germany
HZDR, Dresden, Germany
Charles University, Prague, Czech Republic
The recent discovery of a modified low temperature baking process lead to a reduction of surface losses and an increase of the accelerating gradient of TESLA shape cavities. The hypothesis linking the accelerator performance and the treatment is the suppression of lossy nanohydrides via defect trapping, with vacancy-hydrogen complexes forming at the lower temperatures. Utilizing Doppler broadening Positron Annihilation Spectroscopy and Positron Annihilation Lifetime Spectroscopy samples made from European XFEL niobium sheets and cavity cut-outs were investigated. The evolution of vacancies, hydrogen and their interaction at different temperature levels have been studied during in-situ annealing. Measurements of niobium samples and a correlation between RF, material properties, and V-H distribution in cavity cut-outs has been done.
JLab, Newport News, Virginia, USA
The benefits of reduced RF losses from interstitial "doping" of niobium are well established. Many of the details involved in the process remain yet to be elucidated. The niobium surface reacted with low-pressure nitrogen at 800°C presents a surface with chemical reactivity different than standard niobium. While standard "recipes" are being used to produce cavities, we seek additional insight into the chemical processes that may be used to remove the "undesirable" as-formed surface layer. This may lead to new processing routes or quality assurance methods to build confidence that all surface "nitrides" have been removed. We report a series of alternate chemistry treatments and subsequent morphological examinations and interpret the results. We also introduce a new standardized Nb sample system in use for efficient characterization of varying doping protocols and cross-laboratory calibration.
MSU, East Lansing, Michigan, USA
Michigan State University, East Lansing, Michigan, USA
The thermal conductivity k of superconducting Ta behaves similarly to that of superconducting Nb, albeit at colder temperatures. This shift is due to the superconducting transition temperature of Ta being 4.3 K, versus 9.25 K for Nb. For example, the temperature of the phonon peak of properly treated Ta is about 1 K as opposed to a phonon peak at about 2 K for Nb. The typical value of k of Ta is smaller than Nb with the value at the phonon peak for Ta being O(10) W/ m/ K. Like Nb, k is dominated by phonons at these temperatures. This lattice k can be modeled by the Boltzmann transport equation, solved here by a Monte Carlo method using the relaxation time approximation. Individual scattering mechanisms due to boundaries, dislocations, and residual normal electrons are examined, and the phonon dispersion relation is included. Differences in the thermal response of deformed Ta, as compared with Nb, may be attributed to differences in dislocation densities of the two metals following similar levels of deformation. Boundary scattering dominates at the coldest temperatures. The phonon peak decreases and shifts to warmer temperatures with deformation.
Cornell University, Ithaca, New York, USA
The University of Chicago, Chicago, Illinois, USA
Cornell University (CLASSE), Cornell Laboratory for Accelerator-Based Sciences and Education, Ithaca, New York, USA
We develop and apply new tools to understand Nb surface chemistry and fundamental electronic processes using theoretical ab initio methods. We study the thermodynamics of impurities and hydrides in the near-surface region as well as their effect on the surface band gap. This makes it possible for experimentalists to relate changes in STM dI/dV measurements resulting from different preparations to changes in subsurface structure. We also calculate matrix elements for electron-impurity scattering in Nb for common impurities O, N, C, and H. By transforming these matrix elements into a Wannier function basis, we calculate lifetimes for a dense set of states on the Fermi surface and determine the mean free path as a function of impurity density. This technique can be generalized to calculate other scattering amplitudes and timescales relevant to SRF theory.
JLab, Newport News, Virginia, USA
In recent years, efforts have been invested to leverage the different processes involved in energetic condensation to tailor Nb film growth in sequential steps. The resulting Nb/Cu films display high quality material properties and show promise of high RF performance. The lessons learned are now applied to 1.3 GHz Nb on Cu cavity deposition via high power impulse magnetron sputtering (HiPIMS). RF performance is measured at different temperatures. Particular attention is given to the effect of cooldown and sensitivity to external applied magnetic fields. The results are evaluated in light of the Nb film material and superconducting properties measured with various microscopy and magnetometry techniques in order to better understand the contributing factors to the residual and flux induced surface resistances. This contribution presents the insights gained in exploiting energetic condensation as a path towards RF Q-slope mitigation for Nb/Cu films, correlating film material characteristics with RF performance.
University of Wuppertal, Wuppertal, Germany
Smooth polycrystalline Nb metal foils were exposed to dilute N2 and Kr atmospheres at elevated temperatures of up to 900°C. Transmission mode X-ray absorption spectroscopy (EXAFS) experiments were used to study the resulting changes of the atomic short range order structure in-situ. EXAFS data were collected prior to any heat treatment as well as during the different process steps at elevated temperatures with a time resolution of about 1 s, and the samples were also studied after cooling to room temperature. In general, only very small changes of the Nb-EXAFS data could be detected after the processing in N2-atmospheres, and no evidence for bulk formation of Nb-nitrides was found. In contrast, the quantitative EXAFS data evaluation revealed slightly distorted Nb-Nb coordinations, suggesting that N-atoms are increasingly incorporated on octahedral interstitial sites in the host lattice with increasing N2-exposure. For the treatments in Kr-atmospheres, simultaneous measurements are feasible at both the K-edge of the Nb host and the Kr dopant. Those studies gave clear evidence for a Kr uptake during the heat treatment, and will be discussed in more detail at the conference.