Applications of ferrites and ferromagnets in tuning rf cavities for accelerators

Abstract

Traditionally ferrites have been used in accelerators for tuning rf cavities and in nonreciprocal devices controlling the power flow in rf accelerating systems. Recently, the development of cavity tuners based on perpendicularly biased ferrites has shown good progress. Yttrium iron garnet (YIG) is gradually replacing the traditional Ni Zn ferrites. The use of conventional parallel-biased Ni Zn ferrites for varying the frequency of accelerating cavities has the disadvantage of high saturation magnetization (4πMs). This precludes practical operation in low magnetic loss regions. Different substitutions have been used with YIG to reduce its 4πMs, making it a practical candidate for perpendicular biasing operating in the saturation region. In addition, YIG is known for its low dielectric and magnetic losses. In this paper we give a short review of development in accelerator cavity tuners based on perpendicularly biased iron garnet ferrites. We use the operation of a 52 MHz stripline-based YIG tuner which we have tested at BNL as an example to demonstrate the advantages of using YIG in cavity tuners. We also discuss magnetic tuning techniques based on magnetostriction of Ni.