The Mu2e experiment at Fermilab will search for the neutrinoless μ−→e− conversion in the field of an aluminum nucleus. The Mu2e data-taking plan assumes two running periods, Run I and Run II, separated by an approximately two-year-long shutdown. This paper presents an estimate of the expected Mu2e Run I search sensitivity and includes a detailed discussion of the background sources, uncertainties of their prediction, analysis procedures, and the optimization of the experimental sensitivity. The expected Run I 5σ discovery sensitivity is Rμe=1.2×10−15, with a total expected background of 0.11±0.03 events. In the absence of a signal, the expected upper limit is Rμe<6.2×10−16 at 90% CL. This represents a three order of magnitude improvement over the current experimental limit of Rμe<7×10−13 at 90% CL set by the SINDRUM II experiment.
The Future Circular Collider (FCC-hh) beam dump system must provide a safe and reliable extraction and dilution of the stored beam onto a dump absorber. Energy deposition studies show that damage limits of presently used absorber materials will already be reached for single bunches at 50 TeV. A fast field rise of the extraction kicker is required in order to sufficiently separate swept single bunches on the extraction protection absorbers in case of an asynchronous beam dump. In line with this demand is the proposal of a highly segmented extraction kicker system which allows for accepting a single kicker switch erratic and thus, significantly reduces the probability of an asynchronous beam dump. Superconducting septa are foreseen to limit the overall system length and power consumption. Two extraction system concepts are presented and evaluated regarding overall system length, energy deposition on absorbers, hardware requirements, radiation issues, and layout flexibility.
The first LHC long shutdown (LS1) started in February 2013. It was triggered by the need to consolidate the 13 kA splices between the superconducting magnets to allow the LHC to reach safely its design energy of 14 TeV center of mass. The final design of the consolidated splices is recalled. 1695 interconnections containing 10 170 splices have to be opened. In addition to the work on the 13 kA splices, the other interventions performed during the first long shut-down on all the superconducting circuits are described. All this work has been structured in a project, gathering about 280 persons. The opening of the interconnections started in April 2013 and consolidation works are planned to be completed by August 2014. This paper describes first the preparation phase with the building of the teams and the detailed planning of the operation. Then, it gives feedback from the worksite, namely lessons learnt and adaptations that were implemented, both from the technical and organizational points of view. Finally, perspectives for the completion of this consolidation campaign are given.
The reference design for a superconducting detector solenoid (DS) for the Mu2e experiment has been completed. The main functions of the DS are to provide a graded field in the region of the stopping target, which ranges from 2 to 1 T and a uniform precision magnetic field of 1 T in a volume large enough to house a tracker downstream of the stopping target. The inner diameter of the magnet cryostat is 1.9 m and the length is 10.9 m. The gradient section of the magnet is about 4 m long and the spectrometer section with a uniform magnetic field is about 6 m long. The inner cryostat wall supports the stopping target, tracker, calorimeter and other equipment installed in the DS. This warm bore volume is under vacuum during operation. It is sealed on one end by the muon beam stop, while it is open on the other end where it interfaces with the Transport Solenoid. The operating temperature of the magnetic coil is 4.7 K and is indirectly cooled with helium flowing in a thermosiphon cooling scheme. This paper describes the thermal design of the solenoid, including the design aspects of the thermosiphon for the coil cooling, forced flow cooling of the thermal shields with 2 phase LN2 (Liquid Nitrogen) and the transient studies of the cool down of the cold mass as well.
Summary The LHC is starting operation with beam. The primary goal of CERN and the LHC community is to ensure that the collider is operated efficiently and that it achieves nominal performance in the shortest term. Since several years the community has been discussing the directions for maximizing the physics reach of the LHC by upgrading the experiments, in particular ATLAS and CMS, the LHC machine and the CERN proton injector complex, in a phased approach. The first phase of the LHC interaction region upgrade was approved by Council in December 2007. This phase relies on the mature Nb-Ti superconducting magnet technology with the target of increasing the LHC luminosity to 2 to 3 1034 cm-2s-1, while maximising the use of the existing infrastructure. In this report, we present the goals and the proposed conceptual solutions for the LHC IR Upgrade Phase-I which include the recommendations of the conceptual design review.
The definition of the magnetic center in the Mu2e solenoid system is not trivial given the S-shaped nature of the transport solenoid. Moreover, due to the fringe field of the larger bore adjacent magnets-production solenoid and the detector solenoid-the magnetic center does not coincide with the geometric center of the system. The reference magnetic center can be obtained by tracking a low-momentum charged particle through the whole system. This paper will discuss this method and will evaluate the deviations from the nominal magnetic center given the tolerances in the manufacturing and the alignment of the coils. Methods for the correction of the magnetic center will also be presented.
Following the incident in one of the main dipole circuits of the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) in September 2008, a detailed analysis of all magnet circuits has been performed by a dedicated task force. This analysis has revealed critical issues in the design of the 13 kA splices between the superconducting dipole and quadrupole magnets. These splices have to be consolidated before increasing the beam energy above 4 TeV and operating the LHC at 6.5-7 TeV per beam. The design of the consolidated 13 kA splices is complete and has been reviewed by an international committee of experts. Also, all other types of superconducting circuits have been thoroughly screened for potential safety issues and several important recommendations were established. They were critically assessed and the resulting actions are presented. In addition to the work on the 13 kA splices, other interventions will be performed during the first long shut-down of the LHC to consolidate globally all superconducting circuits. The associated quality control has been defined. Schedule constraints, repair production rate, available space and resources are presented as well.
The Fermilab Mu2e experiment seeks to measure the rare process of direct muon to electron conversion in the field of a nucleus. Key to the design of the experiment is a system of three superconducting solenoids; a muon production solenoid (PS) which is a 1.8 m aperture axially graded solenoid with a peak field of 5 T used to focus secondary pions and muons from a production target located in the solenoid aperture; an “S shaped” transport solenoid (TS) which selects and transports the subsequent muons towards a stopping target; a detector solenoid (DS) which is an axially graded solenoid at the upstream end to focus transported muons to a stopping target, and a spectrometer solenoid at the downstream end to accurately measure the momentum of the outgoing conversion electrons. The magnetic field requirements, the significant magnetic coupling between the solenoids, the curved muon transport geometry and the large beam induced energy deposition into the superconducting coils pose significant challenges to the magnetic, mechanical, and thermal design of this system. In this paper a conceptual design for the magnetic system which meets the Mu2e experiment requirements is presented.
The LHC contains a number of large aperture quadrupoles (MQY) in the insertions. The acceptance of these magnets was based on warm magnetic measurements performed before delivery to CERN. During the series production of the MQY quadrupoles, the permeability of the collars drifted from the nominal value, and effects on the transfer function and multipole components became evident. To study the effects on the magnetic field, variable permeability of the stainless-steel collars as a function of local field and temperature was introduced into a numerical model. Comparing the results with measured data, we could isolate the contribution of permeability deviation on the magnetic field quality. The extrapolation of transfer function and field multipoles to operating temperature and current gives the necessary offsets, which are compared with measurements on a reduced set of magnets.
Two identical single aperture 1-metre superconducting dipoles have been built in collaboration with HMA Power Systems and tested at CERN. The 87.8 mm aperture magnets feature a single layer coil wound using LHC main dipole outer layer cable, phenolic spacer type collars, and a keyed two part structural iron yoke. The magnets are designed as models of the D1 separation dipole in the LHC experimental insertions, whose nominal field is 4.5 T at 4.5 K. In this report we present the test results of the two magnet at 4.3 K and 1.9 K.
The normal and superconducting magnets for the LHC ring have been carefully examined to insure that each of about 1900 assemblies is suitable for the operation in the accelerator. Hardware experts and accelerator physicists have contributed to this work that consisted in magnet acceptance, and sorting according to geometry, field quality and quench level. This paper gives a description of the magnet approval mechanism that has been running since four years, reporting in a concise summary the main results achieved.
The performance of the LHC depends critically on the low-triplets, located on either side of the interaction points. Each triplet consists of four superconducting quadrupole magnets, which must operate reliably at up to 215 T/m, sustain high heat loads and have an excellent field quality. A collaboration between CERN, Fermilab and KEK was set up in 1996 to design and build the triplet systems, and after nine years of joint effort the production will be completed in 2005. We retrace the main events of the project and present the performance of the low-quadrupoles built by KEK and Fermilab and of other elements of the triplet. The assembly of the first triplet at CERN and plans for tunnel installation and commissioning in the LHC are also reported.
The LHC performance depends critically on the low- beta triplets, located on either side of the four interaction points. Each triplet consists of four superconducting quadrupole magnets, which must operate reliably at up to 215 T/m, sustain extremely high heat loads and have an excellent field quality. A collaboration of CERN, Fermilab and KEK was formed in 1996 to design and build the triplet systems, and after nine years of joint effort the production will be completed in early 2006. We retrace the main events of the project and present the design features and performance of the low- beta quadrupoles, built by KEK and Fermilab, as well as of other vital elements of the triplet. The tunnel installation of the first triplet and plans for commissioning in the LHC are also presented. Apart from the excellent technical results, the construction of the LHC low- beta triplets has been a highly enriching experience combining harmoniously the different competences and approaches to engineering in a style reminiscent of high energy physics experiment collaborations.
The LHC insertions are equipped with individually powered superconducting quadrupole assemblies comprising several quadrupole magnets and orbit correctors, and range in length from 5.3 m to 11.3 m. Following the initial experience in the assembly of the pre-series cold masses, the production has advanced well and about half of the total of 82 units has been produced at CERN. In this paper we present the experience gained in steering the cold mass production, in particular with respect to the alignment requirements. We also report on the field quality and other measurements made for assuring the quality of the quadrupoles