On August 2, 2023, the IJCLab PIP2 team validated a first PIP-II prototype cavity in the test cryostat of the Supratech platform. The measured performance goes well beyond the project requirements. As a reminder, it is a “Spoke” type superconducting cavity in solid Niobium whose design results from joint work between Fermilab and IJCLab. It must provide an accelerating field of 11.4 MV/m with a quality factor of approximately 1E10. This is a key milestone in the project which has just been successfully achieved, necessary to trigger the production phase of the cavities.
Before achieving such a result, since October 2022 we have carried out several unsuccessful tests dominated by electronic emission problems on the first three prototype cavities. To best eliminate this limiting phenomenon, the cavity must be perfectly conditioned. These are several surface treatments which eliminate defects and impurities on its internal walls. For nine months, the PIP-II team worked hard to develop an optimal preparation process which proved successful on a first cavity. The test result of a second cavity on August 24, 2023 confirmed the effectiveness of our treatment procedure. All the achievements accomplished over the months, very encouraging for the series, much appreciated by the collaboration, are the result of a lot of work carried out by the staff of Supratech, the cryogenic and RF services of the accelerator center. By early 2024, we will test other cavities, manufactured and prepared by the company Zanon.
The PIP-II project aims to upgrade the Fermilab accelerator complex in the United States to provide a neutrino beam for the DUNE project. IN2P3 contributes significantly to this project by providing prototype components and validating the performance of 33 cavities between 2024 and 2026 for the series phase.