Ultra-high vacuum in superconducting accelerator rings

• Published in: Physics of particles and nuclei letters 2016-12, Vol.13 (7), p.937-941
• Main Authors: Bazanov, A. M., Butenko, A. V., Galimov, A. R., Lugovnin, A. K., Smirnov, A. V.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Helium; High vacuum; Liquid helium; Particle and Nuclear Physics; Physics; Physics and Astronomy; Physics and Technique of Accelerators; Pumping; Residual gas; Superconductivity; Vacuum chambers; Vacuum systems
• ISSN: 1547-4771; 1531-8567
• DOI: 10.1134/S1547477116070098

Achieving the ultra-high vacuum (UHV) in the collider and booster of the NICA project is one of the main challenges when creating this device. It determines the need for a serious approach to this issue and conducting research in this direction. First, it is necessary to understand the effect of the various components of the vacuum systems on the degree of vacuum. It is also necessary to carry out studies of pumping devices for producing the required vacuum (10–9 Pa) in the beam chamber and choose the most optimal pumping scheme. At the same time, it is necessary to figure out how various operations are carried out with the vacuum chamber: preparation of vacuum surfaces, letting in the atmosphere, and warming the chamber after closing the influence on the degree of vacuum and the composition of the residual gas. The temperature may vary from room temperature to liquid helium temperature due to the difficulty of keeping the beam-chamber walls at a constant temperature, including the inner components. This complicates the processes taking place within it. Additional complexity arises due the heating of the chamber walls by various processes during the operation of the accelerator (for example, cycling the magnetic field).