Energetic Condensation Coating of Cu on Stainless Steel for High Power Couplers

Superconducting radiofrequency accelerators require a critical component that connects the radiofrequency power supply (which is warm) to the accelerator cavity (which is very cold). This coupler component must be insulating on the outside to block heat from going into the cold region. It must also be highly conducting on the inside to minimize radiofrequency power losses. No manufacturer has been able to strike a satisfactory balance. Existing methods do not work well enough to satisfy the requirements of the large new accelerators that need to order thousands of these couplers. AASC has validated a better solution in Ph-I. Alameda Applied Sciences Corporation (AASC) has demonstrated thin films of copper coated onto stainless steel that could meet the conflicting requirements of the RF coupler. Stainless steel blocks heat on the outside while copper conducts RF power efficiently on the inside. Our Ph-I coatings passed a high pressure water rinse test at Fermi Lab. The electrical conductivity of the film is characterized by a parameter called RRR that must exceed 30. Our Ph-I films gave RRR=42-64, in excess of requirements. Commercial Applications and Other Benefits: Various governments are expected to invest $1B into superconducting accelerators over the next decade or so. Private sector investment would match or exceed that with breakthroughs as noted above. About 20% of this investment would go to the purchase of RF couplers. This represents a great commercial opportunity. AASC will license its knowhow and patents to larger companies to capitalize on this opportunity.