Influence of Cabling on Current Carrying Capabilities of MgB2 Superconductors

High-current superconducting links based on MgB 2 superconductors are being developed at CERN for the feeding of the superconducting magnets of the LHC High-Luminosity project. The MgB 2 superconductors are very sensitive to the strain that unavoidably occurs during a cabling process. It is difficult to evaluate all the strains that can occur during cabling of MgB 2 conductors, so the minimization of critical current degradation requires a step-by-step evaluation of current properties with the subsequent modification of some components of cable machines. This paper presents some practical results on cabling of MgB 2 round wires and tapes in the nickel matrix from the Columbus Superconductor that are softer than other MgB 2 wires. We compare the currents of the samples taken of the cables at different stages of the cabling with those at delivery, before, and after the modification of components of the cabling machine. Temperature dependencies of critical currents measured in the range from 10 to 30 K are presented.