Ramp rate sensitivities of several superconducting dipole magnets operated in He I and superfluid He II

The quench current of a superconducting dipole magnet decreases from its slow-ramp value as the current ramp-rate is increased, due to heat buildup in the coil winding. This ramp-rate dependence has been measured for several superconducting dipoles in both normal He I and in superfluid He II. The heat generated by charging fields has been measured for severall magnets in He II, where particularly sensitive and accurate measurements can be made of any heat input to the essentially isothermal helium bath by its temperature rise. Previously measured values of heat transfer are applied to the data from one magnet to explain its observed behavior. The conclusion is drawn that at a given cycle rate, a superfluid He II-cooled superconducting accelerator can operate closer to the short-sample limit of the magnet's superconductor than can a corresponding He I-cooled machine.