Resistance of Demountable Mechanical Lap Joints for a High Temperature Superconducting Cable Connector

Experiments conducted to determine the resistance of demountable HTS lap joints with variations in compressive stress are reported here. A joint fixture was constructed that enabled the simultaneous testing of multiple joints of different configurations. The joint fixture was installed in a loading facility, comprising a pneumatic press mounted in a vacuum bell jar and connected to a GM cryocooler. The resistance across each joint was measured by means of voltage taps over a range of compressive joint forces. The test results demonstrated that joint resistances less than 2 muOmega were possible with only light joint loading.