Superconducting electromagnet comprising coils bonded to a heated support structure

摘要

A superconducting electromagnet comprises superconducting coils 10 bonded to a support structure 18 which is in thermal contact with heating elements 42. The heating elements 42 may be closed loops of wire or electrical resistors which are mounted on or in the support structure 18. The heating elements 42 may be used during cooling down and/or quenching of the electromagnet to adjust the thermal contraction and/or expansion of the coils and support structure such that unwanted levels of stress and/or strain do not occur between the coils 10 and the support structure 18. Such stress and/or strain may damage the mechanical bond between the coils and the support structure and may cause damage which interferes with the operation of the electromagnet. The energy to the heating elements 42 may be obtained from an independent energy source or from the energy stored by the electromagnet. The heating elements 42 may be activated when they become inductively coupled to a magnetic field or when a related quench circuit is activated. The support structure 18 may be made of a conductive material such as aluminium or a non-conductive material such as glass fibre reinforced plastic.