FABRICATION OF A PROTOTYPE DIPOLE FOR THE SSC LOW-ENERGY BOOSTER

The Low Energy Booster of the Superconducting Super Collider (SSC) wil l be a synchrotron containing 96 dipoles operatlng between 0.13T and 1 .35T at 10Hz. Each dipole's 1.865 m-long core is made from approximate ly 2900 steel laminations (lams), each 52 x 66 cm and 0.635 mm thick. A need to minimize power supply costs and stringent field specificatio ns led to a straight core with very tight mechanical tolerances of the order of 0.05mm. To satisfy these tolerances, we decided to stack the core in a vertical position; i.e., with the laminations laid horizont ally. We designed and built an unusual vertical stacking fixture that pivots into a horizontal position after all the laminations have been stacked and compressed and four support angles welded onto the laminat ions. The stacking fixture, our experience using it, and conclusions a s to the merits of stacking such a long core vertically will be descri bed. The methods of insulating and potting the pancake coils and their installation into the unsplittable core is also described.