"Fine grain Nb tube for SRF cavities"

Abstract

Superconducting radio frequency (SRF) cavities used in charged particle linear accelerators, are currently fabricated by deep drawing niobium sheets and welding the drawn dishes together. The Nb sheet has a non-uniform microstructure, which leads to unpredictable cavity shape and surface roughness, and inconsistent "spring-back" during forming. In addition, weld zones cause hot spots during cavity operation. These factors limit linear accelerator performance and increase cavity manufacturing cost. Equal channel angular extrusion (ECAE) can be used to refine and homogenize the microstructure of Nb tube for subsequent hydroforming into SRF cavities. Careful selection of deformation and heat treatment conditions during the processing steps can give a uniform and consistent microstructure in the tube, leading to improved deformability and lower manufacturing costs. Favorable microstructures were achieved in short test samples of RRR Nb tube, which may be particularly suitable for hydroforming into SRF cavity strings. The approach demonstrated could be applicable to microstructure engineering of other tube materials including tantalum, titanium, and zirconium.