The Linear Collider Collaboration is pleased to announced the official release of the International Linear Collider Progress Report. The ILC Progress Report is a document outlining the technical progress after the publication of the Technical Design Report (TDR) in 2013. It contains the information regarding the progress in civil engineering studies, accelerator hardware design/development updates, […]
SRF Technology getting ready for the ILC: A Report from Whistler
The Linear Collider Workshop (LCWS2015) will be held, at Whistler, BC, Canada, in November, this year. The 17th International Conference on RF Superconductivity (SRF2015) was held in the same place from 13 to 18, September, just prior to the LCWS. We would thank TRIUMF hosting two major conference/workshop events at the nicest village surrounded by […]
Of cavity performance, tiny beams and official roles: progress in a maturing project
From 12 to 16 May, the Americas Workshop on Linear Colliders (AWLC) 2014 was held at Fermilab in the US. AWLC is one of the series of regional linear collider workshops held around the world. The purpose of this workshop was the continued development of the physics case, and advancing detector and accelerator designs for […]
From DESY inForm: Accelerator – stonewashed
How cavities are refined in a type of tumbler
Usually it’s basic research – especially for particle accelerators – that pioneers new technology. But in this case the researchers obviously had a little inspirational snoop at Levi’s or any other jeans manufacturer’s. Recently, DESY’s superconducting TESLA cavities have started to be surface-treated with a stonewashing equipment – accelerators stonewashed, so to say. While jeans […]
Strengthening Asian capability in SCRF technology
Sixteen thousand – that’s the number of the superconducting radiofrequency (SCRF) accelerating cavities needed to build the 500-Giga-electronvolt linear collider. The fabrications of these 16 000 cavities will be divided between the three regions of Europe, the Americas, and Asia. This week, encouraging news about SCRF cavity fabrication came form Asia. “This is our first […]
‘A little dirt never hurt’
Fermilab researchers may have found an unexpected way to improve SRF cavity performance: adding impurities
Like a jeweler hunting for a flawless diamond, for years, researchers have pursued purity in the niobium material used to make superconducting radiofrequency (SRF) cavities. But a team at Fermilab recently discovered that adding a bit of impurity may actually improve cavity performance. This year, a team led by Fermilab scientist Anna Grassellino found that […]
No more HF?
Fermilab and Faraday Technology Inc. are developing an environmentally and worker friendly electropolishing technique for SRF cavities
The standard electropolishing process for SRF cavities requires a mixture of strong, potentially hazardous acids to smooth the inner surfaces of the cavities, allowing them to reach high gradients. Researchers at Fermilab and Faraday Technology Inc. have developed a new water-based process that would be both safer for workers and more environmentally friendly. In June, […]
Take two for cryomodule 2
Fermilab reinstalls CM2, plans to be ready for cooldown in July
With the repair and reinstallation of the cryomodule known as CM2, researchers at Fermilab, US, are back on the road towards achieving the International Linear Collider’s R&D goal (named task force “S1”): operating a cryomodule at ILC gradient specifications. Originally installed in May 2012 as a part of the Advanced Superconducting Test Accelerator (ASTA) in […]
2013: The year of the snake or the “What if?”
We are beginning the new year of 2013 with the draft of the Technical Design Report (TDR) almost complete. The ILC cost estimates are about to be critically reviewed and the organisations such as the International Linear Collider Steering Committee (ILCSC) and the Global Design Effort (GDE) will be handing over responsibility for the leadership […]
Cavity gradient
The term cavity gradient is used to describe the electric field that accelerates a particle. This reflects the most basic purpose of each cavity. “What you want out of a cavity is to give a particle more energy than it had before,” says Fermilab physicist Andy Hocker. Cavity gradient determines the rate of this change: […]