Development of Ta-matrix Nb3Al Strand and Cable for High-Field Accelerator Magnet

Research and development of Nb3Al strands and cables for a high field accelerator magnet is ongoing under the framework of the CERN-KEK collaboration. In this program, new Ta-matrix Nb3Al strands were developed and their mechanical properties and superconducting properties were studied. The non-Cu Jc values of these strands were 750 ∼ 800 A/mm2 at 15 T and 4.2 K. Using these strands, test fabrication of 27-strand Rutherford cable was carried out in collaboration with NIMS and Fermilab. The properties of the strands extracted from the cable were examined and it was found that there was no degradation of the superconducting properties of the strands. In this paper, we report the fabrication of the strands and the cable in brief and present some of the results obtained by studying their properties.